Running Robin
by Card of Spade
Summary: When Robin faints by the lake, she didn't expect to have the uncontrollable ability of randomly jumping between the dangerous events of an alien's life. Because how is that even possible? Either way, it's terrifying and confusing, yet exciting and curious, and Robin is determined to keep running on as best she can. (OC/1st-12th Doctor)
1. The Night of Their Meeting

**Disclaimer** : I do not own the _Doctor Who_ series. The _Doctor Who_ series is the property of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), and is not my intellectual property. There is no financial gain made from this nor will any be sought. This is for entertainment purposes only.

* * *

 **The Night of Their Meeting**

In a still neighborhood stuffed with small houses, a blue car cruises through the thin road. Yes, blue. As blue as blue can be. With a slivering tint of silver mixed in. Anyways, said car easily navigates the slim space between other vehicles and slides into the empty driveway of a cheerful yellow abode. The compact ride doesn't even stop vrooming before an elderly lady, Paula, hobbles out of the house. Her black bob bounces with each bubbly step and her dark eyes buzz with adoration.

The driver's door pops open and out steps our main character, Robin. She looks like woman's mini-me, dark tan and petite. Black hair and eyes. And smiles all around. The two embrace each other excitedly before moving back and holding one another at arm's length.

"Hey mom," Robin greets the woman with a little peck on the cheek before pulling away. She pops the trunk open and moves around to the back. Out she pulls a brown messenger bag and gray duffle bag. The latter looks like it's about to burst.

"How was the trip?" her mom asks. Seeing the young brunette struggle with the duffle bag, she steps forward and easily lifts it up and over her shoulder. Robin can only give a sheepish grin at the action. The daughter slams the trunk close, then follows her mother towards the front door.

"There was no traffic, so I'd say it was good," Robin answers.

"I'm glad. We wanted to pick you up, but something's wrong with the brakes in my car and you dad has to work overtime today," Paula confesses with a frustrated frown. They cross through the threshold and the younger of the duo takes the lead from there. After all, the old woman needed to take the time to lock up the door real tight.

"But if I don't take the car out every once in a while, it'll just be gathering dust in the parking garage. Besides, it's a four hour drive just from campus to here and I know you guys don't like long trips." Robin opens a wooden white door and steps into a simplistic bedroom. With pale pink walls and flowery, pastel purple covers, the room looks more befitting of either an senior citizen or a child. Not the in-between.

"I laundered the bedsheets yesterday and vacuumed the room, so hopefully it's comfortable." Paula follows in after her daughter, placing the duffle bag near the oak desk at the foot of the bed. A glint off metal catches her eye and she picks it up off the desk. It's an old pocket watch, circular patterns deeply engraved into the dull silver.

"By the way, you forgot to take your watch with you," she says, her eyes reluctantly pulling away from the vintage timepiece to look up. Robin pauses in her unpacking to see her mom fiddling with the watch.

"Oh yeah, I didn't notice it until I was halfway down the highway," Robin says absentmindedly before going back to her tasks. She didn't care too much about the thing – it didn't even work. Nonetheless, Paula flips open the cover, but nothing on the clock moved. Frozen.

"You used to take it everywhere with you when you were younger," the old woman reminisces. Her daughter only lets out a brief laugh.

"It was a phase, mom. I only carried it around then because I thought I looked really cool with it." The brunette is tempted to scowl at the thought of her younger, cringe-worthy self. But she settles for a small frown instead.

"And you were," Paula reassures her daughter, almost teasingly. The college student pauses and leans her head back to give the woman the most dead, unconvinced look she can muster.

"You're my mom, you're supposed to say that." Mother and daughter share a delightful laugh before falling into a comfortable silence for a few.

"Well," her mom disperses the quietness, bringing her hands together in a single clap, "I know how you get exhausted after a long drive, so I'll leave you to your unpacking and nap, okay? Oh, also, we're having your favorite tonight for dinner; lumpia and palabok with halo-halo for dessert*." The grin almost splits Robin's face in half.

"You hardly ever make those outside of holidays. Why now?" she can't help but wonder.

"Oh," her mom shrugs, "I just wanted to eat something other than rice and fish tonight," she casually explains. "In any case, go ahead and get ready for bed. I'll wake you up when for dinner, okay?"

"Hmm…" Robin hums a bit in thought, "I was thinking about checking out the little garden out back when I'm done unpacking. Dad's been bragging about how well it's been going since I last came back."

"Well alright. But if you want to do some yard work, I'm not stopping you, okay?" Paula sends her one last smile before leaving the bedroom, silently closing the door behind her.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

When Robin walks back into the house through a sliding glass door in the back, she can hear the soft voice of her mom floating through the walls. She wiggles out of the larger wellies and briefly washes her hands of the dirt before walking further into the home. In the living room was Paula, lounging on the end of the couch and talking to someone on the phone.

Robin figured that the person on the other end of the line must've been an old friend or perhaps relative of some sorts for her mom was speaking in her native tongue. While she understood Tagalog* just fine, her parents originally spoke completely different dialects. So, even if they were from the same country, they still had to use the former to bridge the language barrier.

The conversation doesn't last long as her mom puts the phone back into the receiver, right as the college student pours herself a cool drink of water in the kitchen.

"So what did you think of the garden?" Paula eagerly asks, standing from her seat and walking across the living room to put the phone back on the receiver.

"It's really coming along well, especially the carrots," Robin responds with a sagely nod. Paula beams with pride and happiness at the approval as she walks into the kitchen to grab herself a snack from the pantry. "Who were you talking to on the phone?" she can't help but wonder, stepping to the side so her mom has more room to move around the small space.

"It was Dr. Smith. You remember them, right?" Yeah, Robin remembers that name. It was someone who was close to her parents. Someone who, oddly enough, could understand both their native tongues when they were speaking over the phone.

"Ah yes, the ever elusive 'Dr. Smith'. I never actually met them, but you and dad speak good of them during the few times they're mentioned." Which was once in a blue moon, if she were to be honest. And they were remarks made in passing rather than an actual conversation. Still, it was a person Robin wants to meet if they got her parents' approval.

"You were so young, so you might not remember. But don't worry, I have a feeling you'll meet them again soon," says Paula as she closes the fridge door, revealing a secretive smile. She gently pats Robin's shoulder before leaving the kitchen with a bottle of iced tea and her daughter in confusion.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

"Hey there."

Robin looks up from her line and turns her head towards the voice to see a black woman, perhaps a few years older than herself, in a leather jacket approaching her with a kind smile. She straightens her back as the stranger approaches, watching her curiously. When the unknown person is within regular talking distance, the smile on her face morphs into an eager grin.

"Hello," Robin greets with a nod as she reels back her line. The brunette looks away for a brief second, her attention being drawn to the wildly flopping fish dangling at the end of the hook.

"I don't think I've seen you around the neighborhood. You new?" she inquires without looking, instead bringing the fish closer. Robin easily unhooks the creature before dumping it into a white bucket at her feet, filled with humming water and other fish.

"Yeah, I haven't been here long." Robin's head swivels to face the unknown person, curiosity and wonder shining from her eyes.

"That accent. Are you from England?" she can't help but ask. The stranger nods then holds up a hand in greeting.

"Yep. Martha Smith, it's nice to meet you. I'd like to shake your hand, but maybe not right now," the woman, Martha, says with a laugh, causing Robin to smile in the humor. She'd never met someone from Europe before, so it was a little exciting.

"Nice to meet you too, Miss Smith. Name's Robin Lobendino," the fisherwoman introduces herself as she threads a piece of cut shrimp into the hook for another go.

"Oh, none of that 'miss' stuff, it makes me feel old. Martha's just fine," the British lady waved off with a bit of a laugh. She watches Robin throw the line, her gaze following the hook as it sails through the clean air in a near-perfect arc before disappearing under the clear lake in a soft plop.

"Alright then, Martha, what brings you all the way to this little town? It's not exactly a tourist destination, especially if you're coming from so far away."

"Nothing, really," Martha just gives a nonchalant shrug, but the corners of her mouth twitched in the tiniest way. It's as if she knew a secret, one that she just can't wait to tell someone about it. "I'm just travelling around a bit with my husband."

"Martha!" Both of their heads turn around at the call and they see a black man, dressed similarly to Martha. He make his way over the grassy hill and towards them, an arm up and waving.

"Speak of the devil," Martha playfully murmurs to Robin before gesturing for the man to come over. When he makes it to their spot, Robin can't help but smile at the sweet sight of the man wrapping an arm around the woman's waist and giving a little peck on the cheek.

"Mickey, this is Robin. Robin, this is Mickey," she introduces them to each other with accompanying gestures. Mickey nods with a smile and holds out a hand. But Robin shakes her head, holding up her hand and wiggling her fingers to show off some of the slime on them. The older man nods in understanding and puts his hand down.

"It's nice to meet you, Robin," Mickey greets her, lightly bouncing on the balls of his feet excitedly.

"Same," the young woman nods. "How are you two finding the town?" Robin can't help but inquire. While there really isn't anything to do, she can't help but love the place for its peacefulness and hopes that the foreigners also find beauty in the serenity.

"It's a very quiet place, nothing really going on," the British man nods, looking around the clearing with a raised brow in an exaggerated manner.

"Not like it's bad. Sometimes we are in desperate need of the sort of calm in our lives," Martha interjects, giving her husband a particularly hard poke into the side of his stomach. He gives a very brief yelp at the sudden contact before offering her a sheepish smile in apology.

"How hectic do they get, if you don't mind me asking?" Right when she asks that, something tugs against the line, causing the tip of the rod to bend slightly at each tug. Robin reacts immediately, jerking the pole upward and reeling her catch in as fast as she can.

"Oh, it gets very chaotic. But it's not something I can ever give up now that I know what it's like," the English woman explains with such a relaxed expression. The couple observe Robin as she reels in her catch, unhooks it, and places it with the others in the bucket at her feet.

"What about you, then? Got any adventures you're living through?" Mickey asks in return right when Robin kneels down and reaches in to a plastic bag that's half full of shrimp, taking a fist full of them out and onto the bucket lid on the ground. She looks around her little station, as if in search of something. Mickey steps forward, leaning down to grab a pair of scissors that's just out of her line of sight and handing them over to her. Robin takes the scissors with a brief word of thanks then goes about the task of cutting the shrimp into smaller sizes.

"Hmm…" the fisherwoman hums, her lips pulling down to the side. "Not really, no," she shakes her head, looking out into the water. Despite not really watching her own actions, the young woman continues making more bait for herself, her movements fluid and natural.

"Ever wanted to go on an adventure?" Martha further questions, causing Robin to pause and really think about it. The couple carefully observes her for her reaction, as if carefully anticipating her answer.

"Sure I've dreamed about it before, but I'm pretty content with my life right now. I mean, my parents are happy and I'm about to graduate with a bachelor's. So no, I don't really want to go out and travel right now. Maybe later when I have a stable job and steady source of income," Robin tells them with a bit of a shrug. She notes how the two foreigners deflate with her response, but she can't help it. While going out to travel the world may be a dream come true for many, one also has to think of the reality of their situation.

"Well, this sort of lifestyle could be adventurous as well. I mean, I hear fishing can get intense from time to time," Mickey speaks up, trying to lighten the mood.

"Yeah, it does," the American chuckles, remembering some of her more crazy ocean adventures. "Do you two know how to fish?" she asks them.

"An old friend taught us a while ago," Martha confirms, her gaze growing distant like she's remembering some good old times.

"Well, I've got some extra rods in my car. Care to join me?" Robin offers. The two look at each other briefly then back at the fisherwoman and give her a nod. Robin gives them a smile, sets down the scissors, wipes her hands on a rag that was with her equipment, and walks over to her blue car. The two follow closely behind as the young woman pops open the trunk and slides out two other fishing poles, handing them off to the couple.

"Oh, do you have a charger by any chance. My phone's about to die and I'm not sure how much longer Martha and I will be outside," Martha suddenly requests.

"Depends. Android or Apple?"

"Android." Nodding in approval, Robin gestures for the woman to follow her up to the front of the car. She opens the door to the driver's seat and leans in to go through the glove compartment. When she came back up, potable charger in hand, her leg bumps against the door and causes something round and metallic to stumble out of the side pocket.

"It's alright, I got it." Martha bends down to pick up the fallen item and stands back up. However, instead of handing it back to its owner, she eyes the thing in his hold. Her thumb runs over the intricate engravings in the lackluster metal.

"What's that then?" Mickey comes up to them, looking from behind her husband to see what he has. "A fob watch?"

"Yeah, some old guy just gave it to me when I was younger. Maybe ten or eleven years ago?" her voice raises slightly in the end, a sign that even she isn't too sure.

"May I?" the English woman places a her thumb over the top button and Robin gives her the nod to go ahead. The cover springs open to reveal a normal-looking clock, but there's something off about it. Martha brings the back to her ear, brows furrowed in confusion. She even shakes it a few times, but her frown remains. "It's not working," she concludes, bringing the watch back down.

"It never did work. I was actually gonna make a trip to the mall to see if there's a watchmaker there who could fix it. Anyway here's the charger." The two trade their items.

"Can I take a look at it?" Mickey pipes up and Robin easily drops the watch into his palm. He takes the time to admire the craftsmanship of the watch before asking, "Why are you getting this fixed now if it's been broken for so long?"

"I don't know," the brunette casually shrugs, "My parents kept bringing it up for the past week, so I thought 'why not'," Robin explains.

"Lucky that you ran into us, huh?" When Robin turns to see Mickey holding the watch out to her. She eyes his secretive little smile with a bit of suspicion, slowly taking the pocket watch. Silence reigns over the small group and it takes a couple of seconds for Robin to register the soft ticking against her palm.

In astonishment, Robin turns the timepiece over in her hand and impatiently presses the button so that the latch releases the cover. At a quick, first glance, there's hardly a noticeable difference. But she's had this thing for years now and can spot it in an instant. Extremely thin and hardly noteworthy is the second hand, metronomically moving clockwise around the roman numerals.

"Wha-Ho-How!?" the young woman stutters out, her eyes, wide in disbelief and bewilderment, whipping between Mickey's smug smile and the working clock. Her awe naturally melts into hearty, deep laughter as she speaks, "Amazing. All these years and it's finally working. How'd you do it?"

Robin plops down into her driver's seat, hypnotized by the watch.

"I used to be a mechanic. Stuff like clocks is pretty simple work," the man shrugs, trying to act modest and all.

"So that's all it really takes, huh?" Robin quietly murmurs. "I tried to fix it when I was younger, but I was just stumped when I opened it up to look at the inside. I couldn't make heads or tails of anything, even when I looked it up online. I just stopped trying after that."

Her head is starting to feel a bit too heavy for her liking.

"You okay?"

Robin blinks rapidly. "Yeah, yeah. Still just surprised, is all…"

It's becoming hard to focus. She starts to fall back, but steady hands grip her shoulders.

"Hey. It's going to be alright, okay? Trust me, you're going to be fine."

Robin doesn't know what's happening. she is terrified.

"Just close your eyes and let it happen."

She doesn't want to. But Robin does it anyway.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

The piercing sound of a high-pitched alarm, along with the sharp lights of electrical explosions and unstable quaking, forces Robin awake and she shoots up from a cold, hard surface with a gasp of surprise. It was dark, but the brief flashes of light from hot sparks and the digital, blue screen in the front was enough for her to deduce that she was in some sort of computer room. There were windows around, but they were too high for her to see out of them.

"Help me, please. Can anybody hear me?" a woman's voice desperately calls out in the front. Robin can't seem to get a good look at her since the chair she is seated on, if it could even be called a chair, blocks her off. But there's something that catches Robin's attention immediately. It's the sound of her voice, accented like that Martha and Mickey couple she met before she passed out.

"Please state the nature of your ailment of injury," an automated voice echoes from speakers all around, completely neutral and even throughout. Robin can't help but whimper a bit at the computerized tone, thinking how such a voice simply didn't fit the growing despair of the situation.

"I'm not injured, I'm crashing. I don't need a doctor," the woman growls in irritation, swiveling her chair around to rapidly punch in some sort of sequence into the control panels around her.

"Wh-where am I?" Robin finally speaks up, but her quivering voice is almost drowned out by the alarms and creaking of the metal walls. The woman urgently pivots the chair to an almost 180 to look at her, eyes wide in agony and utter bewilderment.

"Who are you? How did you get on this ship?" the stranger demands of her, causing the terrified woman to curl into herself, wringing her hands together to the point where her short nails were making lasting indents into her skin.

"I do-don't know!" she manages to utter out past her stammering. "I-I was just fishing by th-the lake and now I'm here. I-I swear!" Tears start dribbling from her eyes and Robin finds herself gasping, only for small sobs to leave her lips. The woman's features soften with sympathy at the dismal sight.

"You stupid computer!" The woman slams a fist into the surface of the panel in fury. The rage behind the abrupt action further terrorizes Robin to the point where she's almost nearly a sitting ball on the floor, quietly weeping behind her knees.

"I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry that you were dragged into this," the captain of the failing ship apologizes in almost a whisper, but Robin can hear her clearly. She weakly nods in understanding.

"A clear statement of your symptoms will help us provide the medical practitioner appropriate to your individual needs," the computerized voice cuts in, utterly emotionless like before. Robin hates it.

"I'm trying to send a distress signal. And you didn't even transport in a doctor, you transported a civilian!"

"I'm a doctor. But probably not the one you were expecting," another voice, a man's, calmly speaks out. Both women immediately jump and swirl around to see who the newcomer is. Casually leaning against the entryway is an older man with short curly hair and a scruffy, vintage suit. It doesn't take long for him to kick off from the arch and stride over to where Robin is. He gently takes a hold of her arms and guides her to stand up, albeit rushing her a bit.

"How are you feeling?" the supposed doctor tenderly asks, absolute concern lacing through his every words. But Robin can't even give him a proper answer, trembling too much that it's hard to even stand properly. So instead, the Doctor gingerly leads her to the nearest seat and guides her to sit. "I'll get all of us out of here safely, okay? I promise," he swears to her, his voice light yet strong. Robin numbly nods and pulls her knees up to the chair.

"Where are the rest of the crew?" the Doctor then turns to the captain, striding over to her seat and looking over the controls.

"Teleported off," she hastily answers.

"But you're still here," he looks back at her, his eyes flickering between the two for a brief moment. "And you've got her."

"I teleported them. But I must've teleported her in by mistake. And then the transmats started failing."

"Why you?"

"Everyone else was screaming." Finally, the mystery man turns to fully face the captain, a free hand out in offering.

"Welcome aboard," he tells her. The woman breathes out in hope, an optimistic smile on her face now.

"Aboard what?" the captain asks, her voice raising with her mood.

"I'll show you." He holds out his other hand for Robin to take as well. The two in distress glance at each other briefly before reaching out to take his hand at the same time. As the explosions of electric sparks grow bigger and more frequent, he hurriedly tugs them out of the bridge and down a hallway.

"Where are we going?" Robin finally speaks up as they're running through the metallic interior, her voice carrying over the blasts of the failing ship. The three are bathed in deep red as the emergency lights switch on.

"Back of the ship, my dearest."

"Why?" This time, it's the captain who inquires.

"Because the front crashes first, think it through," he easily answers, as if it's an easy-enough conclusion to come to. Suddenly, a door right in front of them clangs shut and the Doctor groans out in exasperation, "Oh! Why did you do that?"

"Emergency protocols," the captain quickly explains, releasing the Doctor's hand to throw her own up with the same feeling of annoyance he has.

"What's your name then?" the man in vintage inquires, pulling out a little silver rod from within his coat with his now-free hand. It turns on and emits a weak red light and weird sounds as he waves it over the edges of the door.

"Cass."

"Robin," she answers only a second later. He was speaking in singulars and she wasn't sure who he was really talking to.

"You're young to be crewing a gunship, Cass," he comments.

"Wanted to see the universe," Cass says quietly, almost mournfully like she's kissing that very wish goodbye. "Is it always like this?"

"If you're lucky," the Doctor briefly turns to them and nods. Robin cracks a bit of a smile at the dry humor and Cass even lets out a joking scoff. Finally, the latch on the thick doors releases and slide back open to reveal a battered blue box with the words _Police Public Call Box_ shining in golden yellow at the top. The Doctor puts his little device back into his coat, takes hold of Cass's hand, and tugs them further towards the box.

"Don't worry. It's bigger on the inside," he tells them. He lets go of Robin and reaches towards the silver handle.

"What did you say? 'Bigger on the inside'? Is that what you said?" Cass asks in an indiscernible tone of voice. Robin looks back at her, instantly noticing how all the hope the captain previously had was quickly draining away. Something is wrong. Something is terribly, terribly wrong.

"Yes, come on. You'll love it," the Doctor tries to convince her, gesturing towards the blue wooden doors with his head.

"Is this a TARDIS?" The captain brings up a trembling hand to point at the box.

"Yes, but you'll be perfectly safe. I promise you," he continues to push towards his point.

"Don't touch me!" Cass angrily declares, forcibly pulling her hand out of the Doctor's hold. The man in vintage is silent for a second, an unnerving seriousness overtaking his face. Robin nervously takes a step back away from him and Cass, eyes darting between the two. What was going on? What could have happened to cause such an abrupt change?

"I'm not part of the war. I swear to you, I never was," he enunciates. Robin starts to panic again, her mind trying to come up with a solution. But she knows nothing of this situation she's been thrown in, absolutely nothing. They're on some sort of gunship that's going to crash soon, most likely going to kill them all if they don't get out soon. Now there's a war going on, a dangerous ones by the sound of it.

"You're a Time Lord," the captain all but accuses him, absolute hate dripping from her words.

"Yes, I'm a Time Lord, but I'm one of the nice ones," the Doctor smiles, but there's an edge of misery radiating from him. He tries to reach out for Cass, but she takes a step back, towards the chaos of the ship.

"Get away from me!" She makes an attempt to grab for Robin, but the Doctor is the first to get a hold of her. He harshly pulls her over and shoves her through the door of his police box. The brunette stumbles through and gracelessly falls on cold, hard floor.

Gone were the eruptions and turbulence of the falling gunship. Instead, everything was steady again, with the peaceful hums of machines going off in the background. Slowly, Robin places her hands flat against smooth ground and lifts herself up. There are candelabras everywhere, all of varying sizes and all still burning. However, the neon blue light in a tube in the center of the enormous room easily outshines all of them. It takes a brief moment for Robin to realize just exactly where she is.

"My god, it really is bigger on the inside," she breathes out in equal parts shock and dread. She manages to get up on her feet and make her way towards the blue light with unsteady, uneven steps. Looking around, she notices some antique pieces of furniture scattered around, like a small telescope of some sort and classic globe. It greatly contrasts the center of the room, where there are six, industrial-like structures that go up and arch into the tube of blue lights.

Robin steps up onto the platform and circles a hexagon of panels of odd buttons and switches. The young woman is tempted to push one and see if it can help them, but gets the feeling that that would be an awful course of action.

"What do you plan to do to her?" Robin's head snaps up in recognition of Cass's voice. Even though it crackling like it's coming through the speakers of an old TV, it's definitely the captain. She circles the panels again and spots a tiny TV that's bolted to the side. On the screen was the Doctor's back and Cass behind an octagonal window.

"I'm going to get her to safety, just like I promised you. Now, just open the door. I'm trying to help." But is he really? Cass, kind, young Cass who showed her such sympathy when she had awoken, who apologized and blamed herself for bringing her into the conflict, who tried to pull her away from a soldier, seemed to think that the Doctor is their enemy.

"I shouldn't have called out for help. If I had known a civilian would be here, I would've just teleported the crew out of here and waited patiently for this ship to crash." Even though they didn't know each other, Robin clung to those tiny signs of compassion that the brave woman managed to give in the face of death.

"It doesn't have to be this way. If you can just open the doors and come into the TARDIS, I can fly you two out of here and leave you be. We don't have to see each other ever again." But the medical man is also being kind, daring to go into a crashing vehicle to get them out.

"Never. Time Lords or Daleks, all you do is destroy everything and everyone in your paths just to win some stupid war. Some of the universe is still standing, but it won't be for long will it?" Everything about the situation is all sorts of wrong and she wonders why she's even here in the first place. Robin wonders if her mom or dad are worried about her, left in the misery and uncertainty as to where there daughter could be. God, just thinking about it makes her heart ache in agony and the tears begin anew.

"I'm not leaving this ship without you." Why, oh why, did she have to talk to that couple by the lake? They fixed the watch and let her black out, so they had to be connected to this. Had she done something so horribly wrong to them that they sent her here out of revenge or spite? How did she even get here?

"Well, you're going to die right here. And I feel sorry for that girl, for dragging her here, but at least you won't be alive to turn her into one of your soldiers. Best news all day." Robin crumples to the floor, hands tightly pressed against her ears to block out any more of their conversation. She prays with all her might and desperation that it's all just a bad dream and that her mom will wake her up for breakfast like usual and her dad will tease her for sleeping in as he always does.

Suddenly, the ship violently rocks and Robin is painfully thrown to the floor. The miserable brunette just wants to curl up and cry her heart out, then possibly fall asleep and wake up in her bed. But no. She has to know what had happened. She has to know if, at the very least, Cass and the Doctor are fine. They are such kind people.

So, with waning strength, Robin pushes herself to her feet and stumbles towards the door she was shoved through. Once there, she tries to pull them open, but nothing happens. She begins to tug on the handle in a panic, until it finally unlatches and is abruptly pushed open. Robin falls again, this time on rocky ground.

She rises to her feet to take in the area. No longer is she in a cramped, dark ship. Now she was outside, in a place of jagged spires and a sunset sun. In the flames, she can make out parts of the ship, damaged and destroyed. Robin cautiously steps over and around the metallic debris, dark eyes roving over in search of anyone else.

"Cass!" Robin calls out the second she spots the captain. The woman doesn't move, even as Robin slides down to her knees and next to her. She's desperately shaking her, constantly calling out her name and hoping for any sign of life. Deep down, Robin knows what happened. But she still hopes.

"She's dead, girl." Her own hair whips her with how fast she turns, but she pays the stinging no mind. Instead, her focus zeroes in on a group of women in deep red robes.

"Wh-who are you?" she shudderingly asks, huddling closer to Cass's colding body. The women are eerily still.

"You must come with us, Robin," they speak as one, their voices blending into each other. They take a step forward in unison.

"N-no. I-" She shuts herself up as the group surround her. While a part of Robin wants to rebel against them and demand where she is, the brunette knows that complying is the easiest course of action. Together, all of them lift an arm in a gesture to go forward. So, with a shuddering gulp, Robin rises to her feet and follows their directions.

From the corner of her eye, she notices that one of them lifts up Cass's body and moves to walk behind her. There is no more conversation as they take both the women out of the wreckage. Eventually, the group drags Robin into a cave where lights are flickering. She just barely manages to catch part of an ongoing conversation.

"As a good man, will you have your wife and children fight in your place instead, Doctor?"

"No! Never!"

Robin is directed through an arch and into a cavernous room. There are more of the cloaked strangers, up along the wall and each holding a smoking chalice. The man in vintage and a very old woman immediately focus in on her.

"Then I'm not the one you need to convince of that, am I?" The woman's voice is raspy, words fast and sharp. The terrified brunette is reminded of the old witches from fairy tales, the more she looks at her.

"Robin. You're okay," the Doctor breathes out in relief. But a broken expression of exhaustion and anguish is there. Though Robin can feel the strangers leave her side, all she can do is watch as the man's rough hands come up to gently cup her cheeks. He's cold. And his broken whispers of apologies and reassurance don't make him any warmer.

He's cold.

Cold.

Cold, cold, co—

"Cass is dead." He blinks and leans away from her. The captain's unmoving body is then brought in and carefully laid upon the stone altar. The man rapidly looks between both women before releasing Robin to examine the body.

"You're wasting your time. She is beyond even our help," the old one speaks up.

"I could have saved her. I could have got her off, but she wouldn't listen," he mourns.

"Then she was smarter than you." At that, the medical man looks up. "She understood there was no escaping the Time War. You are part of this, Doctor, whether you like it or not."

"I would rather die," says the man with finality.

"And take your family with you?" the head of the group immediately snaps back. Despite the man's growing anger, she ignores him and turns her attention to the confused girl. "And what about you?"

"Leave her alone." Despite the growl in his voice, the Doctor is ignored.

"If it were you lying on that alter, dead, wouldn't you have wished that someone could have done something?"

"He did try to do something," Robin weakly responds, dark eyes darting between the other two.

"Has he really saved you, though? When all he did was prolong your life for a few more days before the war comes to you?"

"I-I don't know what you're talking about. What war?" War this, war that. Through the turmoil and bewilderment of the last few minutes, Robin can feel herself starting to become agitated too.

"You really don't know, do you?" The mysterious woman begins to circle her like a vulture. "Safe in your home, not knowing that there are whole planets dying by the second. Billions of children screaming in the flames while you sit around in ignorance. How long will it be before you join them? A week? A month?"

"Stop it," the Doctor cuts in before Robin can speak, his voice low and rumbling. He's hunched over Cass's body, but not really looking at her.

"The universe stands on the brink. Do not let it fall. Beg him. Beg him to save us. He is the only one who can." Troubled, dark eyes nervously dart between the other two, a muddled mind whirring to come up with words to say.

"…no…" Robin whispers with a single, miniscule shake of her head. "He…He doesn't want to have anything to do with this war and I don't want to force him." Said man looks up at her, eyes wide in disbelief. But the surprise melts away into a softer expression.

"You would rather put his comfort over everyone else's lives?" the elder sneers at her.

"No, it's not that!" the brunette immediately denies, her anger rising for the first time. However, she takes a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down before continuing. "It's just that…I don't want someone to feel obligated or forced to fight because of me. If he doesn't want to see war, then that's his choice. Not mine."

"What a noble sentiment," the aging woman scoffs. "I wonder if you'll be thinking the same thing when you're screaming, begging for mercy from a Dalek or a Time Lord."

"That's enough," the medicine man groans out, his anger gone to only leave a deep rumble of weariness behind. Robin looks over to see that he had unclipped Cass's baldric and was currently appraising it. Their eyes clash for a brief second, but he looks away as if in shame.

"There's no need for this talk any longer. Make me a warrior. Now." Without another word, the head of the group retrieves her own steaming chalice and hands it off to him.

"I took the liberty of preparing this one myself," she informs him.

"Get out, get out!" he screams, eyes only focused on the chalice in his hands now. The women in red garbs bow their heads and quietly leave the area, but Robin refuses to move. He looks up at her and warns, "You don't want to be here for this."

"…Why are you doing this? Why now, when you've been so adamant about not being a soldier?" she questions him in a quiet voice.

"Because they're right. I know of a way to end the war," the way he pauses and gulps makes Robin think that he has more to say. "But at a terrible price…" he almost whispers in a grave tone.

"Is it going to be worth it, then?" At that, the Doctor's eyes tear away from whatever's in the chalice to look at her—study her.

"For you, it's always worth it." And in the first time since crashing, a small smile forms on the man's face. It's a bit shy and boyish, but its endearment is lost under the aged jadedness of his everything else.

"Will it hurt?"

"I hope so." Robin blinks at that. Why would he want to cause deliberate pain onto himself? It was clear to her that the Doctor is extremely against this war, and yet he is forcing himself to be a part of it. Why make it worse for himself? Before she can protest, the ragged man lifts the cup to his lips and takes a deep drink of its contents. He doubles over almost instantly. The worried woman takes a step forward to help, but he holds a hand up to stop her.

"You should go. Now." It sounds like he's heaving those words of warning out.

"But-but you're hurt! I'm sure I can get some he—" Robin stops herself, watching in morbid fascination as his hands begin to emit a burning, golden light.

"No! No. Listen, my dearest. I don't have much t-time. You need to—" He suddenly snaps back up, his face contorted in unbearable pain. "—need to get back to the ship, the TARDIS!" the Doctor orders her with a scream of agony. Feeling terribly out of her depth—not that she wasn't this entire time—Robin can only numbly nod at the command and turns to leave the room.

"And Robin." Said woman glances back at the Doctor. His voice is but a whisper, but it rings true throughout the cave. "I'm sorry that our first meeting is like this. But I promise you that it's going to get better. I swear."

"…Good luck, mister," Robin wishes him, unsure of what else to say. The best comfort she can offer him now is a smile, albeit a strained one, before taking her leave.

"Is it done?" the elderly woman from before asks the moment she makes it outside, where the rest of her people are waiting. The brunette gives a single, unsure nod and the old lady closes her eyes and softly sighs in relief.

"I see," she says with a nod. Her eyes then snap open and immediately zero in her. "Return to the TARDIS. If the legends are true, then you need to be there. Now go." Robin wants to ask questions the mysterious woman. First a universal war, now legends? The frightened woman is all sorts of messed up right now. But it's not like she even had a chance to ask, with the ladies in red already pushing her towards the direction of the crash and ship.

"May Pythia look after you and protect you on your journey," all of them speak together, their final words before disappearing into the cave.

Robin practically stumbles her way back to the crash site, her wobbling feet carrying her over unknown terrain. It's rocky and unnatural. Where was she? Probably not on Earth. She eventually finds the Doctor's ship, the beaten-up police box. The moment she is just a footstep away from it, both the doors just snap open.

She steps inside, the doors closing behind her automatically, and sits at the edge of the raised platform in the center. Behind her, the console softly beep and boop, adding to the ambiance of the whole…thing…Soothing piano music begins to drift through the room, crackling like it's being played on a distant gramophone. There's so much more Robin wants to do about her situation, wants to question, but her mind begins to grow hazy.

Robin gently lays herself on the ground and blankly stares up at the ceiling, her mind unable to really register anything except the sudden onset of drowsiness. The brunette fights to stay awake, but it's futile.

She closes her eyes. Everything fades to black.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

"What?" Robin twitches awake at the sound of the voice. A man's voice by the sound of it. Her dark eyes flutter open, quickly adjusting to the change of light. Not like it was hard. Wherever she was, it was in a place with golden light in a low setting.

"Who are you?" Another voice. A woman's. The ground is hard and cool, but not solid. It felt like her back was against open holes. A grating?

"What?" It's the man again, his voice a tad bit higher. Robin sits up as silently as she can, really pulling her body up. Looking around, her immediate thoughts of her surroundings is that it's rather dingy. Beat-up.

"Where am I?" She glances over to where two new people were conversing. Or wildly questioning each other, really. They're up on a raised platform with some sort of central device between them. They looked rather classy in their fancy clothes, as opposed to her own casual jeans and shirt.

"What?" Robin looks the other way, to where a set of wooden doors are right there. She remembers the Doctor who chose to fight and wanted pain. Is he okay? She should go and check on him. And maybe she can convince the other two to come or call for help?

"Where the hell is this place?!" Without another thought, Robin shoots for the exit, nearly stumbling on her way. She ignores the shouts of surprise and throws the doors open. But there is no odd stone towers or rocky terrain on the other side.

Instead, it's just a wispy pulsation of sunset colors.

Eerily drifting through the void.

* * *

 **A/N:** And finally, after so long, I've released the rewrite of _Running Robin_! I made a lot of drafts for this first chapter because I couldn't decide which episode to kick off on. But, as you have read, I decided to kick this story off on the mini episode, _The Night of the Doctor_ (don't know if it ever aired, but it's on YouTube if you haven't seen it before).I will be doing episodes from both New and Classic Who and even some stuff from other media, but mostly New Who since there's just so much of Classic and I don't have time to go through all of it.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this little introduction and want to see more of the story. Let me know your thoughts or follow _Running Robin_ for more, I'd really appreciate it!

"… _lumpia and palabok with halo-halo for dessert."_ – Traditional Filipino cuisine. Lumpia is the Filipino version of spring rolls, palabok is a noodle dish with shrimp sauce (technically called "pancit palabok"), and halo-halo is a mixture of shaved ice, evaporated milk, ice cream, and other ingredients.

 _Tagalog_ – One of the languages of the Philippines. There are many different dialects, but there is a standard Tagalog that is one of the official languages of the country.


	2. The Very Merry Wedding (01)

**The Very Merry Wedding! (Part 1)**

 _"What?" Robin twitches awake at the sound of the voice. A man's voice by the sound of it. Her dark eyes flutter open, quickly adjusting to the change of light. Not like it was hard. Wherever she was, it was in a place with golden light in a low setting._

 _"Who are you?" Another voice. A woman's. The ground is hard and cool, but not solid. It felt like her back was against open holes. A grating?_

 _"What?" It's the man again, his voice a tad bit higher. Robin sits up as silently as she can, really pulling her body up. Looking around, her immediate thoughts of her surroundings is that it's rather dingy. Beat-up._

 _"Where am I?" She glances over to where two new people were conversing. Or wildly questioning each other, really. They're up on a raised platform with some sort of central device between them. They looked rather classy in their fancy clothes, as opposed to her own casual jeans and shirt._

 _"What?" Robin looks the other way, to where a set of wooden doors are right there. She remembers the Doctor who chose to fight and wanted pain. Is he okay? She should go and check on him. And maybe she can convince the other two to come or call for help?_

 _"Where the hell is this place?!" Without another thought, Robin shoots for the exit, nearly stumbling on her way. She ignores the shouts of surprise and throws the doors open. But there is no odd stone towers or rocky terrain on the other side._

 _Instead, it's just a wispy pulsation of sunset colors._

 _Eerily drifting through the void._

"Oh my god." Robin feels a presence come up to her. When she glances over, it's the woman from earlier. Red head and in a wedding dress. There was another person too. She looks over her shoulder and immediately spots him. He's practically glowering at her and Robin tenses and caves under the weight of it. She's quick to turn back around, desperate to get away.

"Where are we?" the one in the wedding dress asks, quieter than before. Robin can hear footsteps coming up from behind, but refuses to look. When he was close enough for her to feel the heat radiating off him, she practically presses herself into the door frame. She can still feel his stare on her. And Robin hates it.

"You're in space. Outer space. This is my space ship. It's called the TARDIS," he answers the woman, voice calm and collected. However, Robin gets the impression that he's really not though.

"And who're you?" Robin is asked. She faces the redhead, trying her best to ignore the other man.

"Robin. You?"

"Donna." The supposed bride, Donna, turns back to the other man in silent questioning.

"I'm the Doctor." Robin lightly frowns in thought. The guy from before said he was a doctor too. And his ship was also called a "TARDIS." Maybe they know each other?

"Doctor who?" she can't help but ask. He shifts his head to face her, his expression steadily easing from the coldness before. Softening, even. Maybe?

"Just the Doctor." He turns back to Donna. "Human?" he asks.

"Yeah. Is that optional?" she nearly snaps. Despite no bark behind the words, there is undoubtedly a trace of sarcasm.

"Well it is for me," he says, almost as an afterthought. Donna looks at him, eyes travelling up and down his figure, before facing the…whatever-it-is past the door.

"You're an alien," the redhead deduces.

" _Timelord_ ," Robin immediately thinks, remembering what Cass had called the vintage guy from before. The three are silent for a while, but she eventually breaks it to ask, "Can you take us back?" The Doctor briefly looks at her before leaning over them and slamming the doors shut. He whips around on his heel and dashes back to the central structure with odd buttons and levers.

"Right, where are you supposed to be?" he asks, frantically pressing buttons and flipping levers. The Doctor doesn't bother looking at them, all his focus on down on the panel. Seemingly.

"Saint Mary's, Hayden Road, Chiswick, London, England, Earth, the Solar System," Donna lists off as she steps back onto the raised platform, getting more heated the further she went. She lifts up her arm and eyes her wrist watch. "It's just past three. Oh, this is a disaster," she huffs to herself, sounding like she was about to cry out of frustration.

Robin steps up to the platform and slowly walks around to where the Doctor is. It's obvious that he knows she's there – his movements slow down considerably, but he doesn't lift his head up to look at her. "I know Donna's missing her own wedding," she begins, keeping her voice low to only them, "but please, could you take me to where I last was? I was with a couple of people and they need help right away."

The Doctor remains silent for a moment and clicks something into place before lifting his torso to face her. And with a grave whisper, he says, "I can't do that."

"What? Why not?" Robin whisper-cries out with desperate indignation. "Please, it'll only take a minute, I swe–" The Doctor holds up a hand, putting an end to her pleading. They both risk a glance to where Donna is, but it seems that she hasn't taken notice of their conversation.

"I'll explain everything when we get Donna back to her wedding, I promise," he swears to her. Robin swallows hard, obviously thinking about the offer. But her answer is obvious.

"Okay," she concedes nods. Robin's in no real position to do anything and the sooner she can get to Cass and the other doctor man. The Doctor gives her a smile, kind as it is, before returning back to his controls. Robin takes a step back to lean against one of the curling structures and watch him.

"I knew it," Donna speaks up. When Robin looks over, she spots the redhead rip something away from the railing and stomp over to the Doctor. It's a white, fluffy hoodie with faded marker marks. A very familiar white, fluffy hoodie with faded marker marks. One that should be hanging in her closet. Not a spaceship. "Acting all innocent. I'm not the first, am I? How many women have you abducted?"

The Doctor stands up, the confusion in his face washing away into realization. His brown eyes rapidly dart between the jacket and Robin, who kicks herself off from the structure she's been leaning on and uncrosses her arms. "That's my…my friend's…That's my friend's," he finally answers.

"Where is she, then? Popped out for a space walk?" Donna asks sarcastically.

"She's gone. But she'll be back," the Doctor hastily adds the last part in.

"Oh really?" the redhead practically scoffs, leaning on one foot and giving him an incredulous look. The Doctor glares at her, immediately putting a stop to everything. When he takes a step towards Donna, Robin tenses up, preparing herself to intervene should he get physical. But it never happens. Instead, he storms past the redhead, ripping the jacket out of her arms.

"Right! Chiswick!" he shouts out in faux triumph. It would've been convincing had Robin not seen him literally hurl the article of clothing away just then. The brunette frowns, unconsciously wrapping her arms around herself and inching away from the Doctor. She fears that he may not be as trustworthy as she had hoped.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

Donna immediately dashes to the doors the moment the Doctor announced that they have landed, with mentioned man keeping at her heels. Robin takes a few steps to follow them, but stops when her ears just barely catch a peculiar sound. It's like the groaning of old machines. She turns around to face the control system, where it's originating from.

Robin inches forward, brows furrowing. There's something about the control system that's reigning over her attention. Captivating her in the strangest of ways. Quieting everything and everyone else under a monotone hum. It's hypnotic… Peacefully so…

"Recalibrating!" Robin jumps in a startle at the Doctor's abrupt shout as he sprints past her and to the buttons and levers. What was she doing? What were the Doctor and his ship doing to her?

"She's digesting. What is it? What's wrong?" he asks the machine, gently stroking the center blue tube. The rest of his words fade away into muddle for Robin as she stumbles backwards and out of the spaceship, almost bumping into Donna on the way.

The redhead glances at her before swiftly turning on her heel and briskly walking away. This time, Robin is quick to follow beside her. But she had no idea what to say as comfort, assurance against the weird turn of events. It's something Robin selfishly wants for herself too. The two women walk away from the police box in silence, ignoring the calls of the Doctor.

"Leave me alone," Donna snaps when the Doctor manages to catch up to them. "I just want to get married."

"Come back to the TARDIS," he tries to convince them both.

"No way. That box is too…weird," she denies.

"It's bigger on the inside, that's all," the Doctor, with his hands in his pockets, shrugs. Trying to play off the utter strangeness of their circumstances. But it doesn't work. After all, the situation might be normal for him, but definitely not for them.

"Oh! That's all?" Donna sarcastically quips back. She lifts up her arm to take a glance at her watch. "Ten past three. I'm going to miss it." Robin's heart aches for the woman's plight. Maybe she can help her somehow? She pats her backside and, lo and behold…

"Why not try calling your relatives? Tell them where you are?" Robin inquires, pulling out her cell. With everything going on and with how used to having it she has become, it was easy to forget that she had her phone all along. "Here," she hands it over to Donna, who thanks her profusely. However, the woman's delight fades into confusion when she actually takes a good look at the device.

"What's this?"

"A phone…?"

"This is a phone?"

"Yeah, an Android."

"Well how do you use it?"

"If I may," the Doctor cuts in, pulling out a little silver rod form his pocket. But he didn't even wait for a word of confirmation. He just swipes the phone out of Donna's hand and, activating a blue light and buzzing sound from his little rod, runs it over the cell.

"Hey, what are y–" Robin immediately begins to protest, worried of what he was going to do to her

"Here you go," he hands the phone back to Donna, call app already open. "Just dial directly, we'll go find a taxi."

"But what did–" she's cut off by her own yelp when the Doctor grips her hand and abruptly pulls her away, closer to the road. Robin gives the man a withering look, but his eyes tell her _later_ and she reluctantly concedes. "Taxi!" she calls out instead.

Several cabs pass them by, all of them filled with a person or more. It seems that whenever they're able to spot a free one, someone else takes the spot before they can get there. All of their lights were switching off before they could get to them. The Doctor runs his hands through his hair in frustration, crazing it up more than what it already was.

"Why aren't they stopping?" he looks down to question Robin, who only shrugs helplessly. She's as confused as he is on the matter.

"It's Christmas Eve," Donna comes up from behind with a huff, handing Robin back her phone. "Busiest time of the year for business." Looking around, Robin can see how right the woman is. Hardly anyone is walking with leisure.

"How come you're getting married on Christmas Eve?" the Doctor can't help but ask her.

"Can't bear it, I hate Christmas. Honeymoon, Morocco. Sunshine, lovely," Donna explains like it's the most natural thing in the world to hate Christmas. Robin blinks at the reasoning, a look of understanding washing over her. "Taxi!"

"Hold on, hold on." The Doctor puts a couple of his fingers into his mouth and lets out a long, piercing whistle. Loud enough to cause both Donna and Robin to plug their ears with their hands. Still, the wanted effect is immediate as a cab suddenly pulls a quick U-turn and stops in front of them.

"You couldn't do that a couple minutes ago?" Robin questions the Doctor out of annoyance as she opens the door and allows Donna to hop inside first.

"I'm full of surprises, love," the man responds offhandedly, almost flirtatiously in a way, as enters the car after the redhead. However, Robin just rolls her eyes with a scoff before getting into the cab and slamming the door shut.

"Oh my god," Donna breathes out in horror. Her head whips to face the other two in a panic. "Have you got any money?"

"Er…" the Doctor trails off, unsure. "No. Haven't you?"

"I'm in my wedding dress," the bride answers in exasperation. But neither the Doctor or Robin seem to get it, causing her to groan. "What sort of wedding dress has pockets? Have you ever seen a bride with pockets? When I went to my fitting at Chez Alison, the one thing I forgot to say is give me pockets!" Donna's voice rises as she rants on, causing the other two to back up. Or the Doctor to back Robin into the door.

Suddenly, the cab forcibly brakes, sending the three passengers crashing forward and knocking the air out of their lungs. Looking up, they notice the cab driver practically glaring at them through the rear view mirror.

"Listen, you either have the money for me to take you to Saint Mary's or you don't and I have to kick you out." The Doctor and Donna look at Robin expectantly. She pats around her pockets, but comes up short. The last place she remembers her wallet being is in her car. The brunette risks a glance at the driver, nearly wincing at the growing ire on his face.

"Wait, wait, wait. Uh…" And then she remembers her phone. Robin whips it out from her back pocket and removes the casing to reveal a 20-dollar-bill inside. She grabs it and offers it to the driver. A driver who is sitting on the right side of the vehicle. "You, uh…You take American bills?"

The three are promptly kicked out of the taxi.

"And that goes double for your mother!" Donna screams at the man before he drives off. "I'll have him. I've got his number, I'll have him. Talk about the Christmas spirit."

"That dude just straight up stole my 20," Robin comments, blankly staring after the cab. She quickly brings herself out of her stupor and faces the other two, asking, "What are we gonna do now?" The Doctor runs his hands through his hair several times as he frantically looks around, thinking.

"Okay," he gets their attention, staring off at whatever has caught his interest. Robin doesn't have time to decipher what he managed as he whirls around to face them. "You two try to get a hold of another taxi, I'll get money!" He dashes off right when the words leave his mouth. Making a B line for the ATM.

"Doctor!" Robin calls out to him, stopping him in his tracks right then and there. He looks at her, no doubt wondering what the hell she needs. "How're you gonna get the money? You got a card?"

"I'll…" he's moving his hands, trying to find the words. "I'll do something!" And he runs before she can question him further. Robin huffs and turns around to talk to Donna about a strategy. But the redhead is nowhere near her anymore, having gone off to ask others for money some ways away.

She moves to meet up with her, but a solid body abruptly collides into her from the side and throws her off. Her face would have met the ground had it not been for the person taking a hold of her shoulders and steading her. Robin wants to thank them, but instead freezes up when she feels them lean down and whisper into her ear.

They say something, but she doesn't understand it. Even when the world is silent and still, her mind can't comprehend through the muddle of what the person is saying.

A single blink is all it takes for Robin to regain her focus. The noise of a bustling city becoming clearer and colors springing back to life. Her breathing is heavy, dizziness starting to creep up from the corners of her head. There's no one holding her anymore. In a panic, she frantically whirls around to try and find the stranger.

Her gaze promptly lands on a man, who skids to a stop right in front of her before he can crash straight into her. He looks like a man in a rush – green eyes wide in surprise, floppy brown hair in disarray, and a bowtie that's annoyingly uneven and tilted. Robin knows she's never seen anyone that even looks remotely similar to him, yet can't shake the instinctual feeling that he's someone familiar.

"Hello," the stranger breathes out, all tension leaving his shoulders and face relaxing into a giddiness of sorts. He's nervously playing with his fingers, like a teenager trying to talk to their crush. Even from that single-worded greeting, Robin knows she's heard that voice before. But where?

"Who are you?" she asks him in a quiet voice. Everything is becoming still and silent, just like the seconds before. Instead of giving her a straight answer, he offers a little smile, a tad boyish, and looks down at his hands. He then clears his throat and looks back at her, more serious now. A bit remorseful, even.

"I'm sorry that I can't explain right now, but there isn't enough time." The stranger takes a moment to compose himself. "Just point and think. Or jam it in and think. That works too."

"…Huh?" Robin understands nothing of what he just said. "What-What are you–" However, the man holds up his hands and shushes her gently.

"I know you're scared, Robin. You're terrified." The mentioned woman tenses up at the sound of her own name being spoken by the stranger. "You want answers, I understand that. But I can't give them to you here, not now. He'll explain it all to you soon." He looks over her shoulder and Robin turns her head to see who he's talking about. Through the crowd, she spots the Doctor, impatiently waiting in the queue for the ATM.

"Goodbye, my dear." The words were but a whisper, yet Robin hears it as clear as crystal. She whips around to face the stranger, question him some more, but he's gone. No matter where she frantically looks, there's no trace of him anywhere. He just up and vanished. Suddenly, someone grabs her wrist, jolting her out of her stupor. Looking over, it's Donna facing her with a wide grin.

"C'mon, I've found us a taxi," Donna says in relief as she drags Robin off towards the waiting vehicle. The redhead is surprisingly strong.

"Wait, what about the Doctor?" Robin worriedly asks about as she's being urgently herded into the back seat.

"Is he really that trustworthy? For all we know, he could've been the one who drugged us and brought us here." Before Robin can attempt to refute that, Donna turns around and shouts out, "Thanks for nothing, spaceman! We'll see you in Court!" before shuffling in and slamming the door shut.

Robin only gets a glimpse of the Doctor's distressed expression before the car drives off. She sinks into the cushions as Donna gives the driver directions. The brunette worries if what they're doing is exactly smart. Something is off about the entire situation. Her eyes slide over to the rear view mirror to see that their driver has a Santa mask on. A full-face mask.

"Chin up," Donna says to her, removing her veil and settling in next to her. "After I get married, my husband and I will make sure you get home. Okay?" she tries to reassure her. Robin gives her a smile, albeit a weak, strained one.

"Yeah," she nods. "Yeah, thanks." Even though it's not exactly comforting, Robin truly appreciates the kind gesture. The bride offers her a smile, but it's quickly replaced by a look of indignation when she glances over her shoulder.

"Hold on a minute, I said Chiswick," she tells the driver. "You've missed the turning." Her head rapidly turns between the cabbie and the supposed exit that's getting smaller and smaller. "Excuse me, we should have turned off back there. We're going the wrong way." Apprehension begins to gnaw in Robin's stomach, only growing when recklessly cuts off other drivers while merging onto the freeway.

"Excuse me, driver?" Robin tries to get their attention, but it's no use. She reaches over the seat and grips their shoulder, intending to shake them to attention. However, the brunette freezes at the feeling under her hand. The person's shoulder is hard. Cold. Impossibly so. Surging forward, Robin rips away the red hood. It falls back and the mask falls as well, revealing a golden, robotic head. Both women jump back into their seats in horror.

"Oh my god," Donna breaths out in utter shock. The two quickly move into action, trying to pry either the door or the windows open. But to no effect. Everything is jammed. They try to call out for help, banging on their windows to get the attention of the other drivers. Robin even tries to get the robot to stop the car, gripping its arm and trying to pry it off the wheel. But the damn thing wouldn't budge.

"You are kidding me." Robin turns around to see a blue police box spinning towards them, weaving through the other cars. While there is relief that help is coming, she can't help but agree with Donna's disbelief. The police box eventually catches up to them and the doors fly open to reveal the Doctor.

"Open the door!" he shouts to them, words hardly decipherable.

"Do what?" Donna turns to Robin. "What's he want us to do?"

"I think he wants us to open the door," is Robin's answer as she releases the robot and moves towards Donna.

"Open the door!" the shouting is louder, clearer this time. Donna jerks the handle in frustration to show the Doctor their dilemma.

"I can't, it's locked!" The Doctor reaches into his suit and pulls out the little silver rod from before. He points it and activates it, somehow unlocking the window and door. Donna immediately pulls the window down.

"Santa's a robot," she informs him with a bit of exasperation.

"Donna, we need to open the door," Robin tells her, understanding what the Doctor wants from them.

"What for?" she demands.

"Robin! Donna! You two have got to jump!" The brunette nervously eyes the speeding road over Donna's shoulder. While the reasoning is there, it doesn't make it any less dangerous.

"I'm not blinking flip jumping! I'm supposed to be getting married!" Donna shouts her protests. Something inside the spaceship explodes and the string in his hand loosens considerably, ripping the Doctor's attention away from them. At the same time, the car begins to speed away. The Doctor frantically looks between the explosions and the car.

"Catch!" And he chucks his silver rod through the window before the distance becomes too great. Donna picks it off the floor and hastily examines it.

"What the hell are we supposed to do with this?!" She pushes the button, activating the blue light and whirring. But nothing happens. Robin blinks, remembering the words from the stranger before. An echo.

 _Just point and think._

 _Point and think._

 _Point. And. Think._

Robin grabs the device from Donna, her mind trying to come up with a solution. The door's unlocked now, so the next thing to do is to slow the car down to let the Doctor catch up. So tamper with the driving robot somehow. Break it. Cause it to malfunction. She points the rod at the robot and pushes the button.

And to her surprise and relief, small sparks start to fly from the robot's neck area. Though it grips the steering wheel tighter, it stops accelerating. This gives the Doctor enough time to fly next to them now. But when he does, he's no longer at the door, but rather wildly operating the ship from the panels deeper inside.

"Donna, we've gotta jump onto the Doctor's ship," Robin tells the woman. Though the bride tries to argue, but she holds up her hands to calm her down. "Listen, Santa needs something from us and I'm guessing it's not good. I'll jump first so I can catch you after, okay?" Donna hesitantly nods and the two switch places on the seats.

Robin unlocks the door, which flies open on its own. She moves to the edge of the car, readying herself physically and mentally for the jump. Looking down, it was hard to not think about the immense pain she would be in should she muck up. She might possibly even die. And she only had one chance at this. No room for error. Robin takes a single, deep breath and leans in to jump, but is abruptly halted when Donna desperately pulls on her elbow.

"And what about the Doctor? Do you think we can trust him then?" she worriedly asks. Robin is silent for a second. She can understand Donna's fears.

"I don't think the Doctor is trying to hurt us. I think that he's legitimately trying to help, but only knows about as much as we do about the situation. Trust in the kindness he has shown us thus far," Robin speaks as calmly and clearly as she can. She can see that her words have the desired effect. But Donna just needs one more push.

"At the very least, trust me. I swear to you, I won't let you get hurt. We'll get to the bottom of this and you'll be safe." The two stare at each other for a moment until Donna silently, slowly releases Robin. The brunette turns back around, takes a deep breath, and jumps!

The landing isn't spectacular by any means – nor is it particularly pleasant – but it sticks. But Robin doesn't dwell on her success as there's more she needs to do. So she hastily pushes herself onto her feet and faces the open door. Adjusting her feet to a wider stance, she holds out both her arms to Donna, ready to catch her. And, with a scream, Donna leaps from the car and into Robin's arms. The two fall back and onto the grating.

"Doctor! I've got Donna! We're both onboard!" Robin shouts out at the man. He grins widely and operates his machine with more gusto. She disentangles herself from Donna and closes the doors, feeling utter relief at the sight of them flying away from the robot and its car before she does.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

Robin watches the Doctor battle against the smoke with a fire extinguisher and harsh coughing. And while she would like to help him out, the smoke was just becoming unbearable. So instead, she joins Donna, who is standing near the edge of the rooftop.

"Thank you," the redhead quietly thanks and Robin cracks a small smile.

"No prob." Together, they went to sit right at the edge. Let their feet dangle over thousands of feet casually.

"The funny thing is, for a spaceship, she doesn't really do that much flying. We'd better give her a couple of hours," the Doctor informs them. He unbuttons his blazer and silently offers it to Robin. However, she shakes her head and so he hands it to Donna, who accepts and drapes it over herself.

"God, you're skinny. This wouldn't fit a rat," she complains, to which Robin lets out a light snicker. Watching as the Doctor sits beside Donna, she can see that it's true. He was a rather lanky alien.

"How're you guys feeling?" Robin asks them.

"Doesn't matter," Donna sighs.

"Did we miss it?" the Doctor asks her.

"Yeah."

"Maybe you can book another date?" Robin tries to be supportive.

"Couse we can."

"You've still got the honeymoon," he offers.

"It's just a holiday now."

"Yeah," the Doctor nods, looking ahead. "Yeah, sorry."

"It's not your fault."

"Oh?" He cracks a little smile at that. "That's a change." Suddenly, the Doctor sits up straighter with an "oh" of realization. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a golden ring. Something like a wedding band. "You'd better put this on," he tells Donna.

"Do you have to rub it in?" she demands incredulously. "And don't think I haven't noticed your own ring, either." And she's right. There's a golden band around the Doctor's left ring finger.

"Those creatures can trace you. This is a bio-damper, it should keep you hidden," he explains, completely ignoring that his own band was just pointed out.

"What about me?" Robin asks, bringing attention to herself. "I mean, what if they manage to find her through me?" she clarifies.

"You've got my sonic screwdriver?" At her blank look, he reiterates, "Silver rod I threw in through the window?" Robin's mouth forms "oh" and she nods in confirmation. "Good, keep that with you. Whatever those creatures are looking for, they're looking for a human. The screwdriver should be enough to deter them."

"Why don't I carry it instead of wearing the ring then?" the redhead questions.

"You don't have pockets," the Doctor shrugs and the three share a brief laugh at the small joke. It dissolves into an amicable silence before Donna lifts her hand towards the Doctor. Taking the hint, he slides the band onto her finger.

"With this ring, I thee bio-damp," he jokes.

"For better or worse." Robin smiles at the exchange, glad that their little ragtag group is starting to get along despite all that has happened. Or maybe that's why they're getting along now. Which reminds her…

"Hey, Donna," she calls to the woman, "how _did_ you get into his ship?" Said woman looks down, blinking to recall.

"I was halfway up the aisle when, I don't know, I just sort of vanished," Donna tries to explain. And Robin frowns in thought.

"Okay, we know that someone or something out there wants you for whatever reason. Your vanishment from the church might have been their first attempt to kidnap you," the brunette reasons.

"A kidnapping I got in the way of because you appeared in the TARDIS somehow instead," the Doctor quickly picks up.

"Then what about you?" Donna turns her attention to the woman. "You appeared in there with me too," she points out. It's a valid observation, no doubt.

"No, she's not who they want," the Doctor immediately denies, something which Robin agrees with. It certainly didn't feel that way to her.

"He's right, I don't think they want anything from me. Anyway, what I'm wondering is why did they try to take you right in the middle of a wedding. Why during your ceremony specifically instead of any other day or event?"

"What? Do you think me getting married is the reason why all of this is happening? Is that it?"

"No, no, no," Robin hastily denies, "I just think that the wedding is a big clue as to what's going on."

"How did the wedding come to start?" the Doctor asks.

"Like any other wedding. My fiancé, Lance, proposed to me and we started planning."

"How did you come to know Lance?" Robin inquires.

"Well, I was temping as a secretary at HC Clements. It's where I met Lance." Donna looks off into the distance, a dreamy smile on her face as she began to reminisce. Throughout her explanation, Robin began to think about the man. He sounded like a normal person, but something wasn't right. It was like a typical office romance, but…Hmm…

"When was this?" the Doctor intercedes before she can go off on a tangent.

"Six months ago."

"Whoa," Robin whistles. "That's pretty fast."

"Well, he insisted," Donna shrugs. "And he nagged, and he nagged me. And he just wore me down. And then finally, I just gave in." Behind her back, the Doctor and Robin sent each other a bit of a smile. But they didn't say anything.

"You said you work at HC Clements. What's that?" Robin decides to ask.

"Oh, it's a company for security systems. You know, entry codes, ID cards, that sort of thing. If you ask me, it's a posh name for locksmiths."

"Keys…" the Doctor trails off, looking off into the distance in thought. Robin wants to ask what he's thinking about, but is cut off when Donna pushes herself away from the edge.

"Anyway, enough of my CV. Come on, it's time to face the consequences" she says as she rises to her feet. The other two follow suit. "Oh, this is going to be so shaming. You can do the explaining, spaceman."

 **.o0o.o0o.**

When they trio enter the reception hall of the hotel, they come across the wedding guests already partying under a glittering disco ball with blaring Christmas music. It was truly heartbreaking to see all the "friends and family" of Donna celebrating without a care in the world. Without a care for her. Donna marched further into the room and angrily crosses her arms. The party began to die down as more and more people start to notice her. The music comes to a halt.

"You had the reception without me?" Donna demands, her voice carrying over the uncomfortable silence. But Robin can hear the wavering in her words, like she was about to cry. If she did so, the brunette might do so as well.

"Donna," the man in the center breathes out. "What happened to you?" While he sounds concerned, it didn't exactly feel genuine. Especially when he was jigging up a storm in the center of the dancefloor.

"You had the reception without me?" the bride repeats, slower and angrier. But no one answers.

"Hello, I'm the Doctor and this is Robin," spaceman introduces them with awkward cheeriness. It was an attempt to break the ice, that much was clear. But it was a rather poor attempt. Still, Donna turns to face them at the sound of his voice.

"They had the reception without me," she tells them.

"Y-Yeah. They did," Robin hesitantly nods, unsure of what to do.

"Well, it was all paid for, why not?" a blonde in the middle retorts. Robin frowns and is about to step forward to defend Donna. But it seems the Doctor can read her mind. He quickly grabs her elbow and keeps her to his side.

"This isn't our fight, we shouldn't step in," he whispers into her ear. And, in a way, she's glad he intervened. She didn't exactly have a plan except for some biting, crude words of her own.

"Thank you, Nerys," Donna sarcastically bit out.

"Well, what were we supposed to do," an older woman steps forward. "I got your silly little message in the end. 'I'm on Earth'? Very funny," she practically talks down to Donna as she keeps walking towards them, the crowd moving with her. When everyone starts to rudely bombard the poor woman with questions, Robin can feel the Doctor's grip waver. She can tell that he's ready to step in. Despite advising her the opposite just moment ago.

Donna is frantically looking between everyone, then looks back at her new guests for a second. In that moment, Robin thinks that she's going to ask for help, but that never comes. Instead, a corner of the bride's mouth lifts in a bit of a smirk for a split second before she turns to face the mob and bursts into tears. And almost immediately, the room falls into an ashamed hush.

The man from before steps forward and engulfs her in a hug, causing everyone to clap. Robin glances up at the Doctor and can see him trying to hide his smirk. She isn't sure if her own is even hidden.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

The party is in full swing when Robin walks over to the bar. At first, she was a little apprehensive about leaving Donna, especially when the redhead was so easily swept up into the festivities. But seeing her so happy with her fiancé, she decided to cool off her worries and try to relax. Besides, Donna was a grown woman and can clearly look after herself.

When she gets to the bar, the bartender looks at her for her order since the music is too loud to let words through. Robin mouths "water" and leans against the fine wood as the bartender fills a glass for her. Her eyes briefly roam the guestsuntil the Doctor walks up to her, a plate piled high with food in hand.

That Nerys person wasn't kidding when she said that the reception had been paid for. Because it _definitely_ had. God, the lobster and roasted potatoes were true temptations! And she wasn't too big of a fan of veggies, but it still looked delicious. The Doctor gives her a boyish grin and jerks his head towards the doors.

Getting the message, Robin grabs her water and follows him out of the reception and into the quiet hall. They go over to a decorative table and the Doctor places the vase of flowers on the carpet to put the plate in its place. He pushes the food towards Robin as he leans into the table with an elbow.

"Here, you haven't had anything to eat yet," he explains his actions. It's a sweet gesture and Robin smiles gratefully. She's starving, has been for quite some time now. But it feels rude to just eat in front of him when he doesn't have anything.

"What about you?" she asks in concern.

"Nah, I'll be fine."

"Okay, but if you ever want a bite from the plate, feel free. Cause I don't think I can finish all of this on my own," Robin chuckles and the Doctor joins her briefly. They fall into a comfortable silence and she begins to eat. After consuming a good portion of the food, she finally asks, "So why'd you bring me out here?"

"I promised you that I would explain everything when we get Donna to her wedding. Well, this isn't _exactly_ a wedding, but it's pretty close," the Doctor clarifies. "So…" he trails off, then gestures for Robin to take lead. She takes a moment to think over her next words.

"When you asked us where we needed to go, you said you couldn't go to where I was last was. Why?" she decides to ask. The Doctor runs a hand through his hair, mentally formulating a response.

"Remember when I told you and Donna that I was an alien?"

"Yeah, you're a Timelord or something, right? That's what Cass said the other doctor was."

"The Doctor from the gunship and me, we're the same person." Robin blinks at him, clearly in confusion. She had gotten a good look at the person from before, heard his voice and everything. They were clearly different. But before she can ask for more information, the Doctor continues.

"You see, as a Timelord, I have this thing where I regenerate moments before certain death. My face, my voice, my personality, everything changes. The one you met before is a past version of myself, a past body, so I couldn't take you there." The brunette doesn't speak, soaking up all the new information.

"So it's like your way of cheating death."

"Not necessarily," the Doctor shakes his head. "I can only regenerate a certain number of times." Robin is quiet, having forgone her meal entirely to completely focus on the conversation.

"Okay…" she slowly nods. "Okay. So how come I was able to meet two versions of yourself? It's like I just jumped to one you, and then to another you?"

"Right, yeah, about that." He coughs and rubs the back of his neck before fully looking at her. "It's time travel, we never meet up in the right order. You travel between different points in my life. My past is your future and your future is my past. One minute you'll be with an older me, the next you'll be with a younger me. Or the other way around."

"And this just happens to me? I don't have any control, or say, or…anything?" Robin's voice is beginning to rise, showing her growing agitation. The Doctor shakes his head and looks at her in remorse.

"I'm sorry," he sincerely apologizes instead. "It's random and can't be controlled completely." Robin pushes the half-eaten plate of food away so she can bring her elbows on the table and burry her head into her hands. She can feel her vision waver with the forming tears.

"What about my mom and dad? What about my life before? I can't go back to any of that?" she tries.

"No, not anymore," the Doctor answers somberly. "We visit, yeah, but…you can never stay for long."

And that's when Robin starts crying. She's silent and buries her face into her arms. Everything feels too much for her. She isn't ready for it. That always seemed to be a fatal weakness for her. Never ready for anything. Always wanting to stay in her own, little space of comfort. She wasn't ready to graduate college. She wasn't ready to drive her own car. Or buy her own place. Or deal with the world. How can she ever be ready for random time travel?

Robin turns her head to the side and watches how some children, bored of the party, decide to run out to the hall and play their own game. And a few chaperones follow to watch over them, freely conversing between one another. She begins to calm down at the sight of people enjoying themselves. Her spirits lifts as she watches them be happy.

"I'm sorry," she apologizes to the Doctor, lifting her head up and wiping any remaining tears away. "I shouldn't have started crying or raised my voice at you like that. I'm really sorry."

"Thank you," the Doctor says softly with a warm smile. He lifts a hand a gently places it over her own. They're so much larger. "I'm glad that you were able to express what you were feeling with me. I know you don't know me, but I feel privileged that you let me see this side of you. So, thank you."

Her face darkens at the utter sincerity of his words. No one had ever spoken such words to her. It was a little embarrassing, to be honest. But she truly appreciated it nonetheless. Robin feels the Doctor's ring colder than ever and she wonders what sort of person is married to him. They were lucky, no doubt, to be with such a kind man.

"One more question, if I may," says Robin, to which he agrees with a nod. She's tempted to ask about his marriage, but refrains. There's something else far more important that she needs to make sure of.

"When I first met you, Cass and the old woman kept talking about a war," she begins slowly. The Doctor is observing her curiously to see where she's going. "And you didn't want to be a part of it, but you still became a soldier. And that was your past self, but you're here now." Robin takes a deep breath to stop from rambling and to gather her thoughts.

"It's just that…I just wanted to know…I was just wondering…" The Doctor stares at Robin, patiently waiting for her inquiry. "Are you alright?" He blinks at the question, obviously not having expected. Robin purses her lips and asks again in a steadier voice.

"Of course," the Doctor emphasizes, looking away from her and rubbing the back of his neck. "I'm perfectly fine. A-Okay. No need to worry about me," he lays it on thick. Robin stares at him for a moment before smiling in a way that shows her acceptance of his lie. Her expression causes him to sigh heavily, his own smile wavering off his face.

"Well, some stuff has happened between then and now, especially before you and Donna showed up," he vaguely describes. "But overall…" the Doctor glances at Robin. "I'm fine."

"Yeah?" Robin softly asks, giving him a sincere smile.

"Yeah" the Doctor nods back. The duo fall into an amicable silence as he pulls his hand away and Robin continues to eat. She can see him fiddling with his ring, but doesn't voice her observations. It would be far too intrusive to ask.

"You know," he speaks up, gaining Robin's attention. But even when she's looking at him, the Doctor takes some time to stare at his golden band a little while longer. "I've always been nervous about you meeting me for the first time, where I know you but you don't know me. I guess it's because I was afraid to learn if you weren't the same Robin I had always known. That you were going to be drastically different."

"And?" Robin gently pushes him, curious to know what sort of person she will end up becoming.

"There was never anything for me to worry about," he chuckles. "Since the very beginning, you were always kind."

"Since you know my future, is there anything I need to know?" she asks.

"Time travel is tricky, to say the least, especially between us. Unlike most theories, time isn't linear. It's a big, tangled ball of…stuff. I can't reveal too much about your future and you can't reveal too much about my future. The consequences could be…paradoxical," the Doctor warns her and Robin slowly nods in understanding.

"How would I know if I'm saying too much or not enough?" It all sounds like an extreme balancing act. It's too easy to over-worry at any given moment.

"I don't know," he sheepishly, hesitantly answers. Robin gives him an unimpressed look and he hastily explains himself. "You always seemed to know when I tried fishing for information or what to talk about and I haven't figured out how," he shrugs.

"Okay then," Robin murmurs to herself, gaze descending. The pressure is definitely on. She looks up when the Doctor places his hand over hers again.

"It's going to be alright, okay? You're going to be alright. Trust me," he reassures her. Robin can feel the warmth and gentleness he is exuding and relaxes a bit. She is about to respond back, but a sudden noise from the ballroom pulls both their attention away. They glance at each other before jogging over.

Once inside, the two immediately notice how the partygoers were staring up at the floating Christmas ornaments in hush wonder. They run up beside Donna, who looks at them in a bit of apprehension. All three of them have caught on that something is terribly wrong. The ornaments are just spinning in the air until, suddenly, one dives down and explodes.

The room is in complete chaos right after that, with killer festive decorations diving into the crowd and exploding and people wildly running around to find cover. The trio are forcibly split up by the pandemonium. Robin frantically looks around and spots a line of robot Santas in front of the bar. They have common brass instruments, holding them like a gun.

She pulls out the Doctor's screwdriver from her pocket and almost activates it, but an ornament flies right towards her and she's forced to duck and roll away. Luckily, Robin ends up behind some cover. The sound system. Her dark eyes, though disorientated from all the discord and disarray, zero in on an empty port of the deck. And she remembers the rest of the stranger's words.

 _Or jam it in and think. That works too._

Maybe she can amplify the whirring sound of the screwdriver through the speakers. Disorient the robots enough by the sound waves. Maybe long enough for the Doctor to do something. So, taking the chance, Robin jams the device into the deck and activates it.

The effect is without delay. It's piercing and powerful. Everyone covers their ears and the whole room shakes relentlessly. The robots are convulsing and there are harsh blue sparks blowing from their joints. Their Santa masks drop to the floor and the mechanical parts inside begin to pop off in whichever direction. Robin pulls away when they crumple onto the floor, unmoving.

Before anyone can get up, the Doctor is on his feet and rushing over to her. He grabs her by the shoulders and frenziedly inspects her body. Questions about her health and safety come out of him like rapid fire and Robin can barely keep up. Her ears are still ringing from before.

"Yes, yes, I'm fine," she shakily responds.

"Are you sure? I can take you back to the TARDIS now." The corners of Robin's mouth twitch down at the suggestion.

"No," she firmly turns him down. Though she knows that the Doctor is only expressing genuine concern – a sentiment that warms her heart, no doubt – there's still stuff she needs to do. "I promised Donna that I'll help get to the bottom of what's going on. People have been hurt and I can't just walk away from this if I can help."

"Okay," the Doctor slowly nods, hesitantly releasing her. "But if it gets too dangerous, can you promise me that you'll get to safety?"

"Yeah, I'll do that." The brunette doesn't like it, but she agrees nonetheless. It would become detrimental to their efforts if she were to become a liability rather than an aid.

"Brilliant what you did with the sound system by the way. Where'd you learn that?" he can't help but ask. Robin blinks, trying to come up with a proper answer. She recalls the "stranger's" warnings from the mall and the Doctor's answers from earlier. It seems like she's truly starting to wrap her head around the whole time travel business.

"Don't worry, you'll give me a heads up," she tells him. He's confused for a second, but it eventually clears up with a soft "oh" of realization. Before he can comment, however, Donna walks up to them.

"Doctor?" she worriedly asks for him. "You're a proper doctor, right? People are hurt." And indeed they have been. No one was killed, but no one was unharmed either.

"That's the thing. I don't think that whoever is after you will stop just because people got hurt," the Doctor tells her solemnly.

"So it's only going to get worse?" Donna is absolutely horrified at the thought. "I thought you said the bio-damper would be able to hide me." The Doctor doesn't say anything, clueless about the whole ordeal like everyone else.

"Let's help the guests first, then we'll figure out a plan of action. Okay?" Robin proposes to them. The other two nod and the trio get to work on helping to get everyone patched up and out.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

"Thank you, miss," Geoffrey Noble says out of gratitude as Robin helps him out of the hotel and sets him down along the curb.

"Are you sure you don't need to go to the paramedics?" she asks the old man, jutting her head towards the ambulance cars and paramedics along the side.

"No, it's fine," he waves away the concern. "Just a sprained ankle and some bruising. Other people need more immediate attention than me." Robin nods and stands back up and is about to go aid someone else, but stops when Geoffrey calls to her.

"If you don't mind me asking, how do you know Donna?" he inquires. "I've never known her to have an American friend before."

"Oh, I'm just a–" she struggles a bit to find a good word. "Tourist. Decided to visit the UK for Christmas and she suddenly appeared in front of me and the other guy over there," she points out the Doctor, who is patching up some other peoples' cuts and bruises. He seems to be good at reassuring and comforting the children. "She was distressed about her wedding, so we helped her get back here." It's not like it was a lie anyway.

"Thank you for helping my daughter. You have my sincerest gratitude," he speaks truthfully. "Though, if I'm to be honest, I was hoping she wouldn't come back." At the reproachful, highly judgmental look from Robin, Geoffrey immediately backtracks and clarifies. "No, not like that! Just, for her not to come back to the wedding itself." He sighs heavily, burrowing his head into his hands. Robin's face eases up to something more neutral and she sits down next to him.

"Why?" She sits down next to him.

"It's just that…" He looks around to see if anyone else is within earshot before leaning down a bit and started to speak in a low voice. "I don't trust that man, Lance. Don't trust him at all. Ever since she started working at HC Clements, he's all she ever talks about. Since day one. I told my wife, but she just brushed it off."

"What made you distrust him?"

Geoffrey shook his head, trying to find the right explanation. "When Donna brought him over to dinner for the first time a couple of months ago, he was charming. Pleasant to talk to. Sylvia was really taken with him and pushed Donna to marry him."

"But…?"

"He just seemed to cynical and apathetic about everything. I didn't realize it at first, but it became clearer to me when I saw him sneer at her. It wasn't even for a second and no one was looking at him, but I swear I saw it! After that, I began to notice how he talked, how he acted. There were small nuances, but they were there."

Robin reclines back, soaking up all the information. "Did you try to tell Donna about it?"

"Well, I tried to warn her! But by that time they were already planning the wedding and she refused to listen to anyone who spoke badly about him," Geoffrey helplessly shrugs. "And that's not even the worst part." His voice falls to a whisper. "A few minutes after Donna disappeared, Lance is the one to suggest that we just go to the reception and enjoy what has been paid for. I mean, what sort of to-be-husband parties so soon after his fiancée vanishes like that?"

"Yeah, what kind of person would do that?" Robin quietly repeats, her eyes roaming over to the groom. While he appears to be concerned over everyone's health, she knew she couldn't trust that. It could all be an act. "Thank you for telling me this, mister Noble. I'll do what I can." Geoffrey thanks her again before she stands up and jogs over to the Doctor.

When she gets to where he is, she grabs his elbows and pulls him to a quieter spot.

"Have you figured out a plan?" Robin asks him. But the Doctor runs a hand through his hair in frustration.

"None yet," he admits. "When I went back to the roboforms, they were already deactivated. Someone's controlling them remotely, but I don't know from where. And I tried looking at the camera man's tape when he recorded Donna's disappearance, but it was destroyed in the panic."

"I think we should start looking into Lance." The Doctor looks over her head, then back at her.

"The groom? What for?"

"Cause he's the one who wanted to party when Donna was gone," she summarizes Geoffrey's words. His face grows immeasurably cold at the information. Like he's taking that particular piece personally.

"You think he's involved." It's not a question.

"That or he's just a really bad fiancé. My gut is leaning towards the former," says Robin.

"Good, trust your instincts," the Doctor pats her upper arm encouragingly. Just then, several cop cars arrive at the scene and policemen step out of them. They fan out into the crowd and start asking the guests questions. "C'mon, we can't stay here any longer." Both the Doctor and Robin grabs hands and he leads her towards the "loving" couple.

"If we're going to solve this, where they met is a good place to start," he whispers the plan to her. He then straightens up and approaches them, acting like their conversation never happened. "Lance!" the Doctor clasps the man's shoulder. "Is it Lance? Lance, can you give us a lift? HC Clements, and step on it!" he runs off with Robin before the man can respond.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

"Lance? What was HC Clements working on? Anything top secret? Special operations? Do not enter?" the Doctor interrogates the man as the group runs up the steps towards the corporate building.

"I don't know, I'm in charge of personnel. I wasn't project manager. Why am I even explaining myself? What the hell are we talking about?" he demands, getting more heated the longer he spoke. The four burst through the glass doors. Robin, having already seen the reception through the glass, runs straight to the computers. She jumps over the desk and plops down on one of the office chairs.

Robin whips out the sonic, points it at the computer and activates it. The monitor springs to life and immediately starts flashing through different pages of HC Clements. From news articles to the company website, it was all there.

"What's that? What're you doing?" Donna asks her as she runs around the desk like the men.

"Company might've had some hidden files. Top secrets, special operations, 'do not enters,' stuff like that," the brunette answers. However, her frustration is steadily growing. All the information just keeps whizzing by on the screen and she doesn't know how to stop it. The Doctor reaches over and takes the device back.

"You've got the right idea, but it's not clear enough," he tells her. It only takes him another second to pull up a page with a "T" made out of hexagons. _Torchwood_ is printed beneath it.

"Figures," the Doctor practically growls. Robin subtly leans away from his radiating anger.

"Torchwood? Who are they?" Donna asks.

"They were behind the battle of Canary Wharf," he answers. But Donna and Robin just stare at him. "Cyberman invasion," he tries again. But it doesn't ring any bells. "Skies over London full of Daleks?" Donna still doesn't get it, but Robin does.

"But they weren't just in London though, were they?" The Doctor firmly nods. "They were also in America and everywhere else." She remembers that day, over a decade ago. A man had come to the house and took her and her parents away to safety. Her parents seemed to know him and said that he can be trusted.

"I was scuba diving in Spain," Donna offers as an explanation.

"That big picture, Donna. You keep on missing it," the Doctor tells her. He pulls up a schematics of the building. To Robin, it looks like a normal building. But the Doctor must have noticed something as he shoots back up, grabs her hand, and runs to the elevators.

"Torchwood was destroyed, but HC Clements stayed in business," he explains as he's dashing off.

"Someone's come in and took over," Robin deduces. The two make it to the elevator first and wait for it to come down to them.

"But what do they want with me?" Donna asks when she and Lance catch up to them.

"I don't know," the Doctor admits. "But trust me, Donna. I won't let anything happen to you." The redhead looks at him, really _looks_ at him, then gives him a single, firm nod.

The lift opens with a ding and Robin and the Doctor are the first to hop on inside. She can now understand why he was fixated on the floor plans earlier – there's an entire basement that isn't marked on the schematics.

"How'd you think to look for this?" she can't help but wonder.

"It's Torchwood's style," he scoffs. Before he can activate his screwdriver to gain restricted access, Donna marches inside and stands beside Robin.

"Alright, let's get on with it then," the bride steels herself for the unknown. The Doctor opens his mouth to question her, but she cuts him off. "I want to know what they want with me and why."

"Going down," he says instead, using his sonic to unlock the lower basement button.

"Lance?" Donna asks expectantly for her groom.

"Maybe I should go to the police," the man nervously offers. Robin and the Doctor glance at each other. They didn't want to let him out of their sight. Luckily, they have Donna with them.

"Inside," she demands. With a bit of reluctance, he follows the command and steps into the lift.

The door closes and the elevator descends to the hidden floor.


	3. The Very Merry Wedding (02)

**The Very Merry Wedding! (Part 2)**

The elevator comes to a stop and opens to a wide hallway bathed in eerie green light. There's water on the ground and the clear scent of rust looming through. No one has been looking after the place for quite some time, that much is certain. And something tells Robin that there is no daisy at the end of the green light.

"Where are we? What goes on down here?" Donna asks as the group step off the lift.

"Let's find out," says the Doctor, looking down both ends of the hall.

"Do you think Mister Clements knows about this place?" the bride inquires.

"No doubt," Robin absentmindedly answers as she turns around and inspects the brick walls, noting the stains of corrosion and water damage. She figures the place must have been put out of commission when Torchwood was. But the green light says that someone else must have come in, just like the Doctor said. "The elevator is a direct connection between the building and this place, so there's no way he wouldn't have known this was built."

"Oh look," the Doctor perks up. "Transport." He jogs over to four Segway's that were just there…for some reason. He turns his screwdriver on and uses it to activate the scooters, but only three of them lit up. Everyone else except for Robin were quick to take a ride of their own.

"…Why?" the one left out simply deadpans. The Doctor smiles, a bit too cheekily for her taste, and Donna scoffs out a laugh.

"That one doesn't turn on for some reason," the alien innocently explains with a shrug. "You can always hop on the back of mine." Robin gives him a sharp smile, then walks over to the Doctor. She reaches into his coat pocket and brandishes out the sonic screwdriver.

Robin turns around to inspect the inactive vehicle. It's in good shape and looks exactly the same as the other three, so faulty circuiting is probably not the issue. Hopefully. She points the sonic down to the battery pack and lets the little rod do its magic. The Segway jumps to life and Robin, with a grin of accomplishment, pockets the screwdriver and hops on.

"Nah, I'm good," she tells the Doctor with a far-too-happy grin, causing his own smile to fall. Donna bursts out laughing, but Lance is just confused. The four ride on down the hallway, the original trio laughing up a storm at how ridiculous they must look while their newest addition stares at them like they're crazy.

The Doctor comes to a halt in front of a steel hatch with water dribbling through the cracks. He hops off his Segway and the others follow. There's a sign boasting the Torchwood logo, along with "Authorized Personnel Only" and a radioactive symbol. He twists the wheel of the hatch, the mechanisms inside roughly grinding against each other, and pulls it open. Inside is a small brick room with only a rusty ladder.

"Wait here, just need to get my bearings," the Doctor tells them before he ascends the ladder. Robin and Donna lean in to watch him go higher and higher.

"So where do you suppose we are?" Donna asks, crossing her arms and leaning against the doorway. Robin, knitting her hands behind her back, leans against the other side and looks at the redhead.

"Why are you asking me?" she questions. "The Doctor will figure it out."

"Yeah, but…This whole situation has got me thinking. Like, really-pay-attention-to-everything sort of thinking." Robin slowly nods, starting to understand what Donna needs. She needs a distraction. "Plus, I noticed how you were playing a bit detective on the rooftop. It looked like fun."

"Okay, so we're under some level of water most likely, given the state of this place," the brunette points out. Lance, who stands in the middle, is frantically looking between them. He opens his mouth to say something, but Donna completely cuts him off.

"Sewage systems?" she theorizes.

"No, it would smell much worse," Robin points out. She glances at the little waterfall through the cracks in the brickwork. "Plus, the water's too clear. We might be beneath a lake."

"Thames," Donna realizes. "It's the closest water source to the building and it's huge." Lance opens his mouth again, but it's Robin who bulldozes over him this time.

"If it's the Thames, then we've gotta be right under a place where you can safely stick a ladder to climb through in the middle of the river." The women hum together in thought. For the third time, Lance tries to speak up, but the Doctor jumps down right in front of them.

"Sorry about that, needed to know where we are," he says with a wide grin as he brushes his hands off. "We're–"

"At the Thames," Donna confidently answers for him. The Doctor looks surprised, happily so.

"Right under the flood barrier," he further clarifies.

"So how was Torchwood able to build this place without alerting anyone?" Robin asks as the group continues onward.

"They steal alien technology and reverse engineer it to fit their needs. This whole place was probably built with lasers and the like. Quick and quiet," the Doctor explains. He pushes through a plastic door at the end of the hallway, revealing some sort of laboratory. Almost all of the tubes were filled with bright, bubbling water. Water, no doubt, from the river above.

"What is this for?" Donna wonders aloud as she slowly steps through the equipment. Robin takes her own route through the lab. There's a plastic white table at the end of the room, with a single clipboard on it. The brunette takes it into her hands and scans through the sheets. It has a list of science-sounding names – most of which she had never even seen – along with percentages.

"These look like particle extrusion stations, using the water from the Thames to turn whatever they're making into a liquid," the Doctor theorizes, closely examining the tubes.

"Doctor, take a look at this," Robin steps up to him, handing him the clipboard. The man pulls out a pair of glasses and puts them on before taking the clipboard and examining the paper. His face grows more serious with each page he lifts.

"No, no that can't be." The Doctor flips through the pages several times, looking between the material and the bubbling water.

"What is it?" Donna asks.

"This is the atomic structure for Huon particles." Robin's sure she has never heard that word before in any of her science class. Or any class in general.

"They're not good, are they?" she ventures out based on his reaction.

"Huon energy doesn't exist, not for billions of years because my people got rid of them. The only place to find them is in the TARDIS. But someone's been manufacturing them down here, which means…" the Doctor hands the clipboard back to Robin then darts around the lab, frantically looking for something. He comes to one of the stations and detaches a small container from the base. "Through a flat hydrogen base, they've got Huon particles in liquid form."

"Why would anyone need that if it's so dangerous then?" asks the redhead. Wordlessly, the Doctor steps up to her and turns a knob on the top. The liquid begins to glow golden and Donna's body starts too as well. "Oh my god," she gasps in horror, looking down at herself.

"Is that how she got into the TARDIS?" Robin questions, bringing all attention on her as the Doctor turns the glowing off. "These Huon particles, you said they're only in your TARDIS. The separated particles magnetized or something and pulled her into the ship."

"But why now?" Donna asks, her face one of ultimate discomfort. Robin reaches over and gently grabs the bride's closest hand for comfort, to which she sends a small smile of gratitude for.

"Because the particles are inert, they need something living to catalyze inside and that's you. Saturate the body and then…" he trails off, his mouth forming a silent 'oh' of realization. "You're wedding! That's how the particles activated. Your body's a battleground – adrenaline, acetylcholine, endorphins – everything's going crazy. It's all slowly building up inside of you with the Huon energy, which becomes more and more active until–"

"Until I fly up into your ship," Donna finishes. "My wedding wasn't a kidnapping, it was an accident."

"But now it's a saving," the Doctor tells her seriously. "I promise you, Donna, whatever they've done to you I'll reverse it. We're going to get to the bottom of this and you'll be safe." The bride looks up at him, tired and scared, but nods nonetheless. Robin briefly grins at the interaction, but it falls of as she remembers some unfinished business.

"Not that you expected for her to just disappear in the middle of your wedding," the brunette says, fully facing the quiet groom. "Did you, Lance?"

"What are you talking about?" he demands, looking between the other three.

"No, of course you didn't. I mean, how else would you have known unless you were a scientist?" The Doctor speaks casually, even leaning against one of the tubes and putting his hands in his pocket. But there's a frigid air around him and his face is set in stone. A clear sign that he knows. "All that mattered to you was keeping Donna around. Your hard work would've meant nothing if she just left."

"What are you insinuating? That I'm behind all this?!" Lance cries out in outrage. "How do we know that it isn't you two?" he tries to shift the blame onto Robin and the Doctor. "You just pop out of nowhere and things start happening!"

"Funny thing about this Huon in liquid form," Robin begins, making sure to keep her voice steady. She crosses over to the Doctor, who hands her the container. "It's clear, like water." She swishes it aroun. "It moves like water."

"But it isn't like water," the alien continues for her, taking the vial back. "You see, Huon particles are practically invisible in every way to most lifeforms, especially to humans. Unless, of course, they're activated. So having it in liquid form would be like having a tasteless, colorless mass. It wouldn't be hard to mix it into anything and act like it's not there."

"And that's something you knew and used to your advantage. After all, giving someone a cup of water isn't exactly impactful," Robin finishes, lightly glaring at the man. A part of her wanted to scream her accusations at him. But losing her head will not do anyone any good and she knows that.

"Are you serious?" Lance scoffs with an incredulous shake of his head. "Donna, you can't believe any of this," he tells his fiancée. But she wasn't having any of it.

"You've given me coffee every work day for six months," Donna reminds him, her voice almost a whisper. "For six straight months, you've been poisoning me."

"What? That's ridiculous. I would _never_ do that to you, Donna. You know that." Lance takes a step towards her, arms halfway up to hug her. However, she moves back and the Doctor subtly steps between the couple.

The sound of multiple footsteps echo in the back of Robin's head. She blinks and looks around for the source. Her eyes land on the gray wall labeled "Lab 003" with a split down the middle. Something's moving behind the wall.

"Donna, sweetheart. I love you. Even before the wedding, I vowed to never hurt you. Why would I do something like this?" Lance desperately tries to convince her. It barely makes a sound in Robin's distracted mind. Instead, she's too focused on the pressure that's building in the air.

"I should've listened to my dad. He said that you weren't who you said you were, but I was too caught up in our relationship," Donna shakes her head with a self-depreciating scoff. Everyone sounds like they're underwater, muddling their way through. Robin can hear someone's hissing ring in her ears, but can't make out what they're saying. It's a harsh tone, like they're ordering people around.

"Tell me Lance, who put you up to this?" Now it's the Doctor talking. "Cause there's no way you could've done all of this one your own." A lot of tiny clicks go off at once. Warning bells crash around in her head.

"Get down!" Robin shouts out, grabbing Donna and ducking behind the closest particle station. The air is painfully crackling, leaving no room for any other sound to pass through roaring. Past the hail of golden blurs, Robin can make out the Doctor and Lance on the other side, taking cover like she and Donna had.

Her upper arm is in searing pain, uncomfortably dulled by a sticky substance. But she doesn't have time to think about it as Donna is tugging on her towards a clear path to one of the exits. The Doctor yells something to them before turning around and escaping the opposite way. Robin gets up on her feet and the women dash out of the lab.

They continue sprinting down the green-lit hall before coming up to the hatch from earlier. Robin pries the door open and they two get inside and scurry up the ladder. However, instead of going all the way to the top, they hop off through a doorway on the side. This leads them to a narrow passageway filled with heavy machinery spewing out hot steam. Donna tugs Robin off the side and together they hide behind one of the machines.

"Oh my god, you're bleeding," the redhead breathes out. Robin tentatively pokes the wound to find out that she is, in fact, bleeding. She peeks around the corner and curses under her breath.

"This isn't good," Robin tells her, pushing the words to come out of her trembling body. She's shaking all over and she can't control it. But there are more important matters at hand and Robin forces herself to focus on that. "I've left a trail straight to us. We can't stay here for long."

"Well, come on then. Let's get out of here." Donna climbs to her feet and urges Robin to do the same. However, the brunette stays on the ground.

"What if I lead them away from you? Create a false trail while you get away?" she proposes. "They're only interested in you. I can buy some time for you to get help."

"No way," Donna denies, angry that she even suggested such a thing. The bride kneels back down with a huff and pulls up the edges of her gown. She then begins to stretch it apart, but to no avail.

"What are you doing?" Robin questions the woman. The bride gives up on her tugging and resorts to using her teeth instead. The satin threads begin to tear away from each other.

"Making a bandage to cover up the wound," the redhead answers through the side of her mouth. She gives a sound of triumph when a sizable chunk of fabric rips apart from the dress. "I see it in movies all the time." Donna carefully wraps the satin around the brunette's wound and ties it up. The material starts to grow a few shades redder, but it holds up quite nicely.

Robin is about to respond, but the two freeze when they hear clanking from further down. They press up against the machine they're hiding behind and hold their breathes. The mechanical footsteps are getting closer and Robin decides to take a risk and peek around the corner.

Right on the other side is one of the robots that tried to kidnap Donna, except draped in a black cloak rather than a festive, Santa costume. In its hands was a gun, some sort of rifle. Slowly, she pulls out the sonic screwdriver from her pocket and aims it at the robot. Her thumb freezes over the button as she thinks about the consequences. If it doesn't work, the whirring sound will be more than enough to give them away.

So, with a shuddering breath, Robin points the sonic screwdriver at the robot and activates it. The only thought spinning around in her mind is how she and Donna aren't the ones it's looking for. The robot straightens up and walks further down the corridor, away from them. When its heavy steps can no longer be heard, both Robin and Donna slump against the steaming machine with heavy sighs of relief.

"What should we do now?" Robin tiredly asks. Her body's no longer shaking – which is good, all things considered – but now she's just exhausted. Both physically and mentally. There's so much going on, and it's all happening too fast, that it's hard to keep up. Plus, she was never the athletic type.

"Wait," Donna suddenly sits up. "Do you remember when the Doctor said how I flew up to his ship because of the Huon's inside of me?" Robin gives an unsure nod. "Well, what if we manage to trigger it again, bring us back to the ship?" The brunette sits up at that. The idea certainly has merit.

"How do we do that?" Robin wonders aloud. Donna purses her lips in thought.

"He said that my body was a battleground and that activated it," she recalls.

"And now?"

"Well, I certainly feel the adrenaline and everything else, but nothing's happened yet." Donna frowns, placing a hand on her stomach.

"Then what if we get that container again? The one the Doctor used to make you glow? Maybe that'll activate it," Robin throws out there.

"But he has it, so we would need to find him."

"Maybe there's another one in the lab." Donna grimaces at that and Robin feels the same way – it's the place where they were shot at after all. But there were hardly any alternatives. "Either way we go, it's going to be dangerous."

"Let's go lab then." With renewed confidence and assurance, both women get up to their feet and go back the way they came from.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

Through dumb luck and subpar stealth skills, Robin and Donna manage to make it back to the laboratory with no interruptions. Pushing the plastic door open, they crawl back inside, using the stations as cover. They immediately notice that the wall from before is completely gone now, revealing that the room is larger than they first thought. Further back is some scaffolding and a giant hole. How deep it goes, nobody knows.

Oh. And there's also a giant red spider with a humanoid top. Along with a row of gun-slinging robots overhead. The two just barely manage to hold back a gasp at the sight of it.

"Donna," Robin whispers to the woman, gaining her attention. She moves further into the lab and carefully pulls out an identical container of liquid Huon from the foot of a station.

"How did the Doctor activate it?" Donna asks once she catches up.

"He turned this," the brunette put her hand on the thin knob, but doesn't move it. "If this doesn't work, the light from the activation might give us away," she warns. Donna peers over the edge to spy on the thing before lowering her head back down.

"Do it." With a firm nod, Robin starts to twist–

"Let go! Let go of me!" The two women freeze at the shouts of a familiar voice. They take a peak over the edge to see Lance being dragged in by two robots from the other lab entrance. He's certainly putting up a fight, but it's to no avail. The robots stop right at the edge of the lab, where the wall would be.

"If a key is lost, then another must be cut," the spider hisses out. Robin blinks, recalling the hissing voice from moments before they were shot at. They're undeniably the same.

"No, you can't do this to me!" Lance cries out, growing more desperate as he tries to wrench his arms free. "You promised me a chance if I made you a key! You gave me your word!" A third robot starts to walk to him, an industrial jug of water in its hands. Robin doesn't have a good feeling about this.

"You are funny," the alien spider mockingly laughs down at him. "But now that I have measured the bride's catalysis, I can force feed it into you." The other two forcibly hold Lance's head still, jaw open, as the third unscrews the jug and begins to pour water down into him. He struggling to get away, choking and drowning by the sounds of it.

Robin starts to pull out the sonic, but is stopped by a hand on her wrist. She looks back at Donna in disbelief, who looks down with uncertainty. While she understands that Lance has deeply hurt her out of greed and ambition, it's still no excuse to let him be killed.

"Donna," she gently, albeit sternly, whispers to the redhead. The mentioned person jolts her head up. Her eyes are glistening with hesitation. But Donna eventually chooses to release Robin, who wastes no time in sonicing the robots around Lance. They stop for only a second, but that brief window is enough for the man to wrench himself free.

"Lance!" Donna shouts for him, shooting up from their hiding spot. He immediately noticed her and dashes to them.

"My keys! At arms!" the spider orders and the robots takes their aim. But before they can fire a single bullet, Robin turns the knob.

However, instead of them going to the TARDIS, the TARDIS materializes around them. Gunshots go off, but the bounce off the exterior of the ship as it forms around them. Her breathing returning to normal, Robin doesn't bother to hide the wide grin of sweet relief from her face. And neither does Donna. In their moment of joy, they embrace one another with exuberant laughter.

"Where the hell are we?" the rude cry forces the two apart and they turn to face Lance, who is looking around in bewilderment.

"Oi!" Donna scathingly shouts at him when he tries to move around. "Not one step until we figure out what we're gonna do." With a last glare, she swishes away from the man to focus on Robin. "Alright, what are we gonna do?" she asks her in a hushed whisper.

"Find the Doctor," Robin nods before hopping onto the raised platform to inspect the large console. While she had seen the man operate the ship with wild abandon, she never realized just how much he was really doing. Faced with numerous buttons, levers and keys, Robin doesn't even know where to begin.

"Okay. How?" the redhead follows her, glancing between the control unit and her.

"Uh…" Robin reaches out and with a couple of blue sticks. "I'll figure something out," she lamely finishes in a low voice.

"You don't know what you're doing, do you?" Lance sarcastically speaks out.

"Hush!" Donna immediately reprimands him, glaring over her shoulder briefly.

"Look Lance, this is a very delicate machine to operate. So I would _really_ appreciate some nice and calm so I don't mess it up," Robin stresses without looking over, making sure that her voice is steady. She can hear the man huff and his arms hit his sides, but nothing much after that.

Robin places her hands at the edge of the console and leans in, drowning out Donna and Lance. With herself, Donna and Lance safe – maybe, hopefully – Robin can put all her focus on finding the Doctor. She's desperately trying to remember how the man flew the ship, but other than run around and push whatever's in sight, she's got nothing. Robin reaches out to push something–

 _Slam!_

"Oh thank god," the brunette sighs in relief at the sight of the Doctor bursting through the front door. He looks between the three other occupants in bewilderment.

"How did you guys get in here?" he asks them. Robin lifts up her container of Huon liquid and shows it to him.

"We used this and it brought the TARDIS to us," she explains as he steps up to the console.

"Not exactly what we planned, but it worked," Donna adds.

"Activate the energy between this and Donna to act as a magnet for the TARDIS. Brilliant," he complimented both women, looking extremely proud and surprised. The Doctor then presses a few buttons and pulls some levers in rapid succession.

"What about you?"

"Had the same idea, but you guys beat me to it," the Doctor briefly chuckles. However, his amusement immediately vanishes when he sets his eyes on Lance. It's enough to make the man flinch. "So tell me, Lance," he begins conversationally, pushing in a final button that causes the ship to shake a bit before it stabilizes. "How is it that you know the Empress of the Racnoss?" The groom looks between the group before sighing and heavily leaning against the railing.

"It started when Clements went missing," Lance begins. "No one thought he was missing cause he kept bragging about going to the tropics for the holiday. But something didn't feel right, so I started investigating. That's when I found out about the Torchwood basement. When I came down, the Empress was already here with her army."

"You said she offered you a chance," Robin brings up. "What did you mean by that?" He tightens lips, considering his answer. However, under the scrutiny of all three of them, he decides to go with the truth.

"She offered to show me the universe, the chance to go out there and see it. The size of it all. It's like you said, Doctor. The big picture."

"Even if you get other people hurt?" Donna immediately snaps, anger taking over her features. "How deplorable can you get?"

"It's better than a night with you," Lance is quick to say, equally confrontational. The two were quick to get into each other's faces, engaging in a shouting match. And it was a fierce one, one that had Robin cowering into herself to try and get away.

"Enough!" the Doctor yells, his voice booming over everything else and silencing them instantly. "Alright, here's the plan. I'm going to take Robin to the med-bay and have her wound looked at while you two play nice here, capisce?" All he gets are reluctant agreements in mumbles, but it's good enough for him.

The Doctor walks around the console and gently takes Robin's hand into his own. And, with a warning glare at the bride and groom, leads her up the stairs and further into the TARDIS.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

"How big is this place?" Robin casually asks, lightly kicking her legs and looking around the massive room. She's up on an examination table while the Doctor is rummaging through various cabinets and drawers in search of something. Everything about the infirmary is alien, from the screen diagrams of other species to the weird medicines on display.

"The TARDIS? Oh, she's infinite. She can make or delete any sort of room," he proudly tells her. The Doctor lets out a triumphant "aha!" when he finally finds what he was looking for. He bounces over to her and Robin can see he has a gel tube in hand.

"So who was that red spider…person? You called her a 'Racnoss'?" she wonders as the Doctor starts to gingerly untie the satin bandage. She tenses a little at the feeling of dried blood being pulled away from the wound, but it isn't painful.

"The Racnoss are a race from the Dark Time, billions of years ago. They were carnivores, omnivores. Devoured entire planets. However, the Fledging Empires went to war against them and they were wiped out," the Doctor explains as he places the fabric on the table. He takes the tube and squeezes out some blue, fluorescent gel onto his fingers. "This is gonna be cold."

"Then what about the one in the lab?" Robin flinches when the gel makes contact with her wound. It's definitely cold, uncomfortably so. And the furious tingling didn't make it any better. "And how long is this supposed to stay on my skin?"

"Last of her kind, must have fled from the war during its last stages," he tells her, wiping away the excess gel on a spare towel. The Doctor leans down towards her arm, inspecting the wound. "Only a minute or so."

"What does this all have to do with Huon then?" Robin asks. It is and was, after all, the source of everything going on. Looking down at the alien and the layer of goop on her arm, she's tempted to at least stick her finger in it. To know what it feels like.

"I don't know. But, the hole in the lab has been dug out by lasers, straight into the Earth's core. We need to find out what's down there." Together, they watch as the golden flecks inside the medicinal jelly go out one by one. Almost like stars going out in the night.

"Hmm…" Robin hums in fascination, finding it a bit difficult to pull her attention away from it. "What if that Racnoss out there _isn't_ the last of her kind?" The Doctor blinks up at her, so she further explains her theory. "You said she was the Empress, so I assume – if she was a good empress who cared about her people – she wouldn't have escaped alone."

"She would have brought others with her," he finishes her train of thoughts with his own. He picks up the towel from earlier and starts to wipe the gel away now that it's only blue. Still pretty, though. "Then that would mean that she isn't the _last_ of her kind, per say, but the only one awake. And if that's true, then…oh," the Doctor slows to a stop in that breath, eyebrows shooting up.

"What is it?" Robin questions him, wanting to know what he knows. She also takes the towel out of his hands and removes the remainder of the goop before folding it over and setting it off to the side. The brunette runs her hand over the healed skin, amazed at how fast it took to disappear.

"She could be using the Huon to wake the rest of the species up. Have it sit in a living body, saturate it over a period of time. Then, when it's activated, use it to wake up the rest. It's like jumpstarting a car. She's going to jumpstart the remainder of her race," he explains.

"We need to find a way to stop her," Robin says in shock, hopping off the examination table and onto her feet. Without further delay, she and the Doctor sweep out of the medical bay side-by-side.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

"Donna," Robin calls out once she crosses into the main room. Said redhead, who was seated on the chair with her arms crossed and away from Lance, startles at the interruption and nearly falls off. "Sorry about that," the brunette quickly apologizes as she comes closer.

"Oh my god, you nearly scared me to death," Donna heavily breathes out, putting a hand over her heart to try and calm herself down. Once she's calm, she gives Robin a cursory look over. "And how'd you get healed so quickly? You guys weren't gone for very long. It hasn't even been a minute since you left."

"It hasn't?" Robin is certain that they've been gone for a few of minutes at least. She glances at the Doctor across the console, who only gives her a little grin of secrecy. Knowing the unspoken sign, the brunette refrains from further questions.

"Right then!" the Doctor excitedly shouts as he begins operating his ship. "We figured out the Racnoss plan and now we need a way to stop it. Ideas?" No one speaks up. "Oh come on, you two were brilliant before," he almost whines.

"The only thing I can think of is going to the authorities," Donna offers with a shrug. "But I don't think aliens are their expertise."

"No, not like this," he agrees with her in a thinking murmur. "They would see this as a hostile takeover and respond in kind. Robin?"

"Negotiate with the Empress to try and get her to leave?" Robin shrugs. It's certainly _far_ better than violence, but the effectiveness is…questionable.

"The Empress keeps everything except herself here," Lance suddenly speaks up as he steps up onto the raised platform with them. Everyone else looks at him to continue. "The ornament bombs from the reception should be down here, we can use those."

"No," the Doctor immediately shoots the idea down with a voice of absolution. "We will not solve this by blowing them up. We'll try it by Robin's suggestion." He then dives back down to the console.

"And if that doesn't work?" the groom challenges. The Doctor looks up, a glare set in his eyes. A beat of silence passes through, but everyone gets the message. The tense, icy quietness remains long after the Doctor continues working the control.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

"– going by this line of logic, you're the new key. Brand new particles, living particles," the Doctor quietly explains for Donna as the four sneak through the maze that is the Torchwood basement. He had parked the TARDIS in some random area of a large hall, but Lance pointed them to the direction of the lab.

"Why are you still here?" Robin whispers to Lance, more curious than anything. The two of them were at the back of the ragtag group and, thankfully, not pulling any attention to them.

"Can't exactly go back to the Empress now, can I?" he sarcastically replies. Either way, Robin did agree with him. Going back would have a high probability of death. Still, there were other options he could've considered…

"But you're with us," she points out, a little lilt in her voice. Hopefully Lance is having, or had, a change of heart. "You know the layout of this place pretty well."

"What are you trying to say?" Lance accuses her, but it does nothing to dampen her faith. Both of them unconsciously stop and straighten up to focus on their talk.

"You could have left at any moment. Find the elevator to get back to HC Clements and leave, but you're still here. Why?" Robin further questions him. Lance looks off to the side, placing his hands on his hips and pursing his lips. When he starts shaking his head, Robin knows he's serious. "C'mon Lance, talk to me."

"Look," he sighs out. "I didn't mean for anyone else to get involved. The deal was Donna and no one else. I didn't even know the Christmas trees from the party were tampered with."

"So you're guilty," Robin surmises with a nod. Lance tries to deny it, but the words just won't come out. "And, if the Empress would've kept her word, you wouldn't be able to see the 'bigger picture' like you wanted because the guilt would've stayed with you." And he nods, agreeing with her.

"It was so much easier when it was just Donna," he starts off. "She used to be vain and thick, like her mum. I was stuck with a woman who thought the height of excitement was a new flavor of Pringles, a woman who couldn't even point out Germany on a map! I mean, all that yapping and texting was–"

"Woah, woah, woah," Robin puts him on a halt with a hand up. While she is a bit annoyed and angered that he was badmouthing such a good person, something he said jumped out at her. "'She used to be'," the brunette repeated the words. "What do you mean by that?"

"Ever since she met you and the Doctor, Donna's changed," Lance tells her. "Now she's figuring out where we are, ripping up her wedding dress to cover your wound," he rigidly gestures to her now-healed arm for emphasis. "And she's even saved me despite knowing what I did."

"Why are you acting like this is a bad thing?" Robin asks because she can sense that underlying negativity in his tone. She can't figure out if there's a sense of jealousy or a narcissistic thought that he should be better than that.

"Because I've known her for six months and you haven't known her for a day," he grounds it out like it's the most obvious thing in the world.

"Look around us, Lance," she briefly swings her arms around. "These aren't normal circumstances."

"So?"

"Some of people's true colors show when they're in danger. You showed us yours and Donna's showed us hers." And with that Robin turns around to continue walking, but doesn't even take a step forward. "And looking around myself, I can see that the Doctor and Donna are nowhere in sight."

She and Lance glance at each other briefly before hurrying down the hall.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

"Empress of the Racnoss, I give you one last chance. I can find you a planet. I can find you and your children a place in the universe to co-exist. Take that offer and end this now," they hear the Doctor's voice echo through the spacious room.

"He's not very convincing when being held at gunpoint," Lance whispers to Robin. Instead of going directly to the lab, the two decided to take another route that lead them to one of the balconies. Now they are crouching low and peering over the railing to see the disaster down below.

"I don't think anyone can be," the brunette murmurs back, a grimace on her features as she takes in the scene. The Doctor and Donna were held immobile by four robots at the foot of the Empress and there was a whole line with guns around in a circle. It doesn't look good.

"This clever little man is so funny," the Empress hisses down at them.

"What're we gonna do?" he question. Observing the Doctor's failing attempts at negotiation makes Robin certain of one thing.

"I don't know, talking isn't going to help us any further. It seems that the Empress is dead-set on awakening her children and letting them feast on this planet," Robin heavily sighs out in distress.

"The bombs could still be down here," Lance reminds her.

"No." But Robin is quick to refuse it in absolution. "We're not going to blow up the Racnoss just because they want to live."

"They want to eat this planet," he instantly replies in a sharp voice.

"They're probably born that way. That's not their fault," Robin raises her voice, knowing just how true it was. Kids shouldn't be punished for existing.

"Oh, so you're saying that it's okay for them to devour humans just because," Lance sarcastically bites out, growing ever so slightly louder.

"I'm not saying that at all," she heatedly denies. "I'm just saying that we should consider _all_ of our options _before_ turning to violence. So help me think of something else." This leaves the two of them glaring at each other.

"You wanna know what I think?" Lance inquires. "That it's gotten awfully quiet down there." Both of them look over the railing to see that everyone had stopped what they were doing and were staring up at them.

"Run." Robin and Lance bolt from the balcony, ignoring the Racnoss' outraged shrieking and bullet hell. They dash through the damp hallway, back the way they came. But brake when Lance harshly tugs on the brunette's elbow.

"This way." The two make a sharp turn into a smaller hall and continue doing so through the maze-like basement in hopes of throwing off their pursuers. They skid to a stop when Lance latches on to a hatch. He's trying to pry the wheel open, but it doesn't budge. Robin pulls out the sonic and unlocks the wheel with the little device. Once it's open, she and Lance jump into the room and lock the hatch behind them.

"Where are we?" Robin asks him, warily eyeing the cardboard boxes around. Curious, she flips one of the flaps open and sees the shiny the ornaments inside. A feeling of dread washes over her, only growing exponentially when she truly notices how many boxes are in the long room.

"Look, I know you said no violence, but we can use these to have an advantage over her. Flaunt it in her face to show her that we mean business," Lance tries to convince her.

"Or maybe she'll have her robots shoot us down before we even utter a word," Robin counters.

"It's still a better shot than what the Doctor had." And Robin knows it's true. And Lance knows that she knows. "We don't have to set these off, just use them for show. It's non-violent and gives us an actual chance to talk with the Empress." Robin sighs, forlorn.

"Okay, how do we use these?" she asks him in reluctance and defeat.

"There should be a remote control somewhere." Lance ventures deeper into the room, searching through the boxes. It only takes a few moments of sifting until he holds up a large, N64-esque controller with an "aha!" of victory. He hands it off to her.

"Why are you giving this to me?!" Robin begins to panic. "I don't wanna do it! And why is this even here in the first place?!"

"I don't know how to use it and you have that weird device with you that does…whatever," Lance shrugs for a lack of a better word. "You have more experience with alien technology than I do. Also, she doesn't control the bombs, the bots do that for her."

With a deep, uneasy breath, Robin turns her attention to the box she had opened and points the controller there. She tentatively pokes buttons and hesitantly wiggles the analog sticks. One wrong move and boom. After some experimenting, she begins to memorize how to move and fly the baubles around.

"You think you can do it?" Lance hurriedly asks her.

"Yeah, can you bring a box of these things?" Robin and Lance proceed to sneak out of the room and through the maze. The brunette doesn't need to look to know that her knuckles are white from the iron-clad grip she has on the controller. Her trembling is enough of a sign.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

"Empress of the Racnoss," Robin's deep voice echoes throughout the lab and drill sight, easily gaining everyone's attention. Up on a mezzanine, she stands tall with the remote in her hands and the box of explosive ornaments at her feet. While she presents herself with an air of caution and confidence, inside she's freaking out. But looking down at the Doctor and Donna covered in webs and about to be hoisted up to the webbings above, she forces her fears away.

"I know the Doctor has offered to bring you and your children to another planet, away from here where you may rise up again to your former glory. I'm here to extend that offer," she declares, staring straight into the Empress.

"And what else can you offer me?" the alien hisses at her, hubris spilling through her tone. Instead of speaking, Robin uses the controller to maneuver the Christmas baubles out of the box and into the air, strategically spread out. The Empress understands the warning and glares at her.

"I can promise you that I won't let these bombs explode down that hole where your children are." Though she feels vile to be threatening, Robin keeps up her image of calm and collected. Valiantly so. Her dark eyes peek a glimpse at the Doctor and Donna, a bit of relief coming to her when she spots Lance sneaking up to them from behind.

"Those bombs become nothing more than ornaments when they're too far away from their controllers. They'll be useless before they get down there," the Empress mocks her with a challenging sneer. "Take aim! Take aim!" she shouts at the robots, who snap to attention and indeed take aim at her. Robin swallows, but doesn't flinch away.

"The bombs may not make it down there, but water will." When the Racnoss' eyes narrow in anger, Robin knows she's got her attention now. "We're right under the River Thames, a large body of water that stretches across the city." The Empress regards her for a moment in tense silence, slowly crawling her way up to the mezzanine to glare at her.

"At ease," the spider-like being orders the robots. Robin lets out a breath she didn't know she was holding. "What sort of compromise are you looking for?"

"If we can get you and your children onto a planet of your own, then you will let my friends go and you will leave Earth and humankind alone," the brunette moderately and clearly.

"And how will you do that?"

"The TARDIS is infinite in size," Robin luckily remembers. Though she can't help but feel like she's betraying the Doctor a bit be giving away this sort of information. "It will be no problem." But it's for the good of mankind, so she hopes he won't mind.

"A TARDIS?" The Empress lets out a gasp of horror. "You're from Gallifrey! You murdered my people," she shrieks and recoils away from Robin like she's an raging inferno from hell.

"What is more important to you, Empress?" Robin hurriedly asks. There's too much on the line to let the deal fall now. "Holding on to old enemies or ensuring a future for your race?"

"Release the clever little doctor man, but keep the bride and groom." Robin's head snaps down when she hears her friends' cries of distress and opposition. On the ground floor, she can see the robots come up and apprehend Donna and Lance, but leave the Doctor alone. "You have one hour to do what you must before I purge the particles from their bodies and awaken my children."

With a nod, Robin lets the bombs float back into the cardboard box then leaves the room.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

"Are you okay, Robin?" the Doctor immediately asks her when he shuts the TARDIS doors behind them.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm fine," Robin drunkenly responds, collapsing on the chair. The Doctor, with his long legs, makes it to her in only a few steps. He takes a hold of her hands and places his thumbs on her pulse points.

"You're trembling and your heart is beating a lot faster than it should be," he tells her his observations. But Robin just lets out a breathy laugh and sags further into the seat.

"Look man, I just negotiated with an alien that's twenty times larger than my body. The leader of a race! I got her to actually listen to me!" She shakes her head in disbelief with a hazy smile. But it fades away into a faraway look of horror. "And I did that by threatening the lives of her people…An entire race…" Her eyes suddenly snap up to the Doctor. "I'm a horrible person," she whispers to him.

"No you aren't, Robin," the Doctor consoles her, taking a seat right next to her and placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. "You're brilliant. You could have easily killed the Empress with the bombs and drown the rest of the Racnoss to save us, but you didn't. Instead, you stayed true to your beliefs," he warmly reminds her, clear pride brimming in every word.

"Yeah?" The Doctor grins widely.

"Oh yeah," he nods, patting her shoulder for reassurance.

"Thanks, Doctor," Robin thanks him sincerely, leaning into him a little an enjoying the bit of companionship. But she only lets it last a couple of seconds. There are far more pressing matters to attend to. "So how're we gonna do this?" She pushes herself up by her knees and walks over to the console "Go down the hole and tow 'em out somewhere else?"

"No, I've got a better idea." The Doctor springs up to his feet and flies to the controls. "I think you'll love it." The ship starts to rock uncontrollably, forcing Robin to grip onto the railing to steady herself. It doesn't take long for a final, hard jolt for the ship to completely still.

"Come on," the Doctor gestures for her to follow him and they walk to the door together. "Robin Lobendino, welcome to the creation of the Earth." With a dramatic flourish, he grabs the handles and pulls the doors open to reveal the most breathtaking sight she has ever seen.

There were clouds bathed in golden sunlight, against a background of transcendent blues blending together seamlessly. Rocks and dust aimlessly float around and she reaches out to poke at a little one that came in too close. Robin laughs a little as it flies away with no sign of stopping.

"Huh?" Still, as gorgeous as it is, she has no idea what's going on. Last she knew, they were in modern-day London. Unless…

"The TARDIS doesn't just travel through space," the Doctor smugly tells her.

"No way," Robin laughs with an open smile. In a way, it did make sense. If she was to be travelling time and space through his lives like he explained, he should be able to do that same.

"Yep," he confirms , popping out the 'p'. "T-A-R-D-I-S, time and relative dimensions in space." Mulling over the information, the brunette leans against the doorframe, crossing her arms over her chest. Her smile fades away into a look of deep thought when she realizes that, for all the beauty there is, it's rather lonesome.

"Is this my life now?" she quietly asks him. "With you and the TARDIS?"

"And all of space and time to explore," the Doctor adds, his grin faltering a bit. Robin glances up at him, her dark brown eyes meeting his lighter-shaded ones. While it's definitely tempting to just run off and have an adventure, she doesn't want that to be the rest of her life. Returning her focus to the cosmos, Robin immediately catches something from the corner of her eye.

"Hey, Doctor. Look," she gets his attention, pointing out to a large something with very many, distinct points. It's unlike the rest of the rocks and debris floating about. "What is it?"

"The Racnoss, hiding from the war. What's it doing?" They watch as all the dust and stones start to aggressively circle the webbed-ship before latching onto it.

"One giant mass whose gravity will pull everything else to it, eventually creating a planet," Robin recalls from past science classes. "They're the mass. The Racnoss are literally becoming the center of the Earth," she realizes.

"We can't just take their ship if that's the case," the Doctor says.

"What if we just replace it with another large rock?" she offers.

"No, if we do that we could completely alter human history because the Earth wouldn't look the same. But what if we…" the Doctor suddenly bolts off towards the console, leaving behind a stunned Robin. She quickly closes the doors before following him to the raised platform, observing as he pilots them someplace else.

"Where are we going now?" she asks.

"Uh…Another place where no human has ever gone before." Robin frowns a bit, catching the Doctor's hesitancy. When the TARDIS lands, she shoots him a suspicious look before walking over to the doors and opening them wide.

But instead of the ethereal, albeit lonesome, scenery of the universe that Robin was hoping, it's a sickeningly pulsating place of uneven goop and eerie darkness. There were cocoons everywhere, stuck in place by the abnormal amount of webbing that's everywhere. The only source of light is from the TARDIS itself, casting ghostly shadows that stretch out into the abyss. And don't even get her started on the stank.

"You said it yourself, the TARDIS is infinite in size. We can take all of the eggs onboard and bring them to another planet," the Doctor explains. "And I have just the equipment for that." The brunette turns around to see the Doctor standing on the platform with garishly orange suits, one in each hand.

Robin lets out a strangled, high-pitched groan as she realizes what they're going to do. And she can't help but think that the TARDIS, through its nondescript bleeps and blips, feels the same way.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

"Empress of the Racnoss," the Doctor calls out when they step out of the TARDIS. After some grueling, disgusting work of rolling the eggs onto the spacecraft then depositing them on an ideal planet, the duo were still in their suits and covered in muck. While the Doctor gets the alien leader's attention, Robin walks off to where Donna and Lance are being held at.

"How're you guys doing?" she asks. But they make faces of disgust when she gets close enough.

"Ugh! What is that smell?!" Donna nearly hurls, causing Robin to take a big step back.

"Sorry, we were just finishing up our end of the bargain. It, uh…wasn't pleasant, to say the least." She tries to smile, but the two just grimace at that.

"So is that it, then? Are we free to go now?" Lance eagerly asks.

"Not yet. The Empress still wants to use the Huon energy in you two to reawaken her race," Robin explains with a shake of her head. But seeing their panicked expressions, she immediately tries to soften the blow. "The Doctor promises that neither of you will get hurt, she's just gonna flush the particles out of your system and you'll be free of them."

"Robin! Donna!" All three of them look over to see the Doctor gesturing for them to come over before disappearing into the TARDIS. The Empress beams just beams herself away somewhere.

"Alright, let's get this over with," Robin sighs to them. "Oh, and before we get into the TARDIS," she stops them and turns around to explain before they got to close. "Just watch your hands. And your feet. And your everything." They give her questioning looks, but Robin only smiles before walking forwards again. Once they get close enough to the ship, both Donna and Lance recoil in repulsion.

While there is a sense of schadenfreude in her, Robin still can't help but feel guilty. So she pulls off her helmet and holds it out towards them. "Anyone want?" The two scramble for it, but Donna is faster. The redhead immediately puts the helmet on and heavily sighs in relief.

"Thanks for that. You sure you're going to be okay?" Donna asks her in concern, but Robin just grins.

"Yeah, I'll be fine." Not really, but she's betting on the fact that the trip shouldn't take too long.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

The moment the TARDIS touched ground, Robin and Lance burst through the doors and collapse onto the ground, heavily breathing in the fresh air together. It turned out her hunch was wrong and the trip took much longer than expected. Because of the fragile cargo onboard and the possible repercussions they would face should said cargo be damaged in any way, the Doctor was forced to actually drive carefully.

"Where is this place?" When they look up, they see the Empress looming over them.

"We're in the Maflyke constellation, on planet Tedrogawa in the Seyliv galaxy. Approximately 328,000 light years away from the Earth, directly east," the Doctor tells as he and Donna step out of the TARDIS. He makes his way over to help Robin up to her feet.

"This wasteland is where you intend to leave my race?" the alien queen seethes down at them, her many eyes heatedly glaring. And, looking around, Robin can see how she would be offended. The place is a cold, barren wasteland. It was almost like the moon, if the moon was made of murky brown rocks and had geysers of bright blue light spilling from every deep hole.

But instead of a reply, the Doctor merely gestures for everyone to follow him and the group walk towards the nearest light hole. The opening is large enough for even the Empress to go through. All of them peek over the edge and are greeted by a most wondrous sight.

Under the surface of the planet is a stunning forest. Fauna and foliage of many different colors, sizes, and shape were everywhere, bathed in the heavenly light that just disappears further down. The whole place is just brimming with alien life and beauty.

"Tedrogawa has no star to heat up its surface, like the Earth. Instead, the light and heat is in the center of the planet and all of the organisms have evolved over time in order to live beneath the surface and thrive. Isn't that brilliant?" the Doctor giddily explains. While he his voice is loud enough to reach everyone's ears, he's only facing Robin, like an eager puppy waiting for approval and attention.

"It's amazing," she quietly agrees with him, taking it all in.

"This place is acceptable," the Empress speaks up, breaking the two out of their little reverie. The group watch as she climbs down and hangs off the "ceiling" of the planet easily. It takes a moment for Robin to realize that she's a spider. An alien spider, but still a spider. "Bring my children here and your friends will be freed from the Huon particles." The humans nod and stand back up.

"Alright. I don't have enough protective gear for all four of us, so Donna, Lance, you guys stay here while Robin and I get the eggs out here," the Doctor gives out instructions. Donna hands Robin her helmet back and the two go back to the ship.

"What if the Racnoss spread out?" Robin suddenly asks the Doctor once they're far enough away. "You said it yourself, they devour whole planets," she recalls.

"The Maflyke constellation is made up of twenty-four more planets similar to this one; uninhabited except for some wildlife. In the future, people avoided this part of the galaxy and now I know why," he reassured her.

"I'm so glad that this is almost over. I can't wait to get out of this suit," Robin huffs as she steps into the TARDIS after the Doctor.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

"I'm so glad that this is over!" Robin triumphantly shouts as she throws the TARDIS doors wide open and steps out onto the cold street, arms high above her head. She then flops down onto the snow, happily sighing at the feeling of cold, clean mush cushioning her back. Even though she was back to her shirt and jeans, the freezing temperatures didn't do anything to deteriorate her spirit.

Everything went amazing. She and the Doctor rolled all of the eggs into the hole, and the Empress flushed all of the Huon energy out of both Donna and Lance in order to awaken her species again. And during the whole time, the TARDIS cleaned herself(?) and now the console room was free of questionable goop. Robin doesn't know how that happened, but she doesn't care.

"You're gonna catch a cold like that," Donna laughs a little, peering down at Robin from above.

"Could say the same to you," Robin sasses back, lazily gesturing to her wedding dress. Still, she manages to get herself up to a seated position, just as Lance walks over to them. "What are you guys gonna do now?" she can't help but ask.

"Not temping, that's for sure," Donna answers with absolution. The two of them take a seat beside Robin. "I don't know. Travel. See a bit more of planet Earth. Walk in the dust. Just go out there and do something."

"I don't know either. Being on that planet…uh Tedo–Tetro–" Lance struggles to remember the name.

"Tedrogawa," Robin corrects him.

"Yes, that. Being there me realize that, as beautiful as something may be, the desolation may not be worth it," he sighs out in a distant tone. "I'm thinking of leaving London. Maybe settle down in a nice, small village somewhere in Switzerland. Get to know the locals and clear my head."

"And I think it's time I give this back to you." Donna wiggles the engagement ring off her finger and holds it out to Lance. "For better or for worse?" she jokes a bit, a corner of her mouth lifting upward.

"For better," Lance agrees with her, taking the ring back and pocketing it. The three sit in amicable silence, enjoying the peaceful moment. And it only gets better when snowflakes start drifting down. "Oh? Would you look at that?"

"There we go!" The three of them look over their shoulders to see the Doctor walking towards them, a bit of a bounce in his steps. When he reaches them, he doesn't hesitate to plop on down to the snow. "Basic atmospheric excitation to get a little snow going. Perfect way to end the day."

"Could have done without the explanation," Robin comments under her breath, but the Doctor still hears her.

"What? Atmospheric excitation? It's really simple science. What happens is–" He stops himself when Robin holds up her hand.

"Please don't explain how you got our atmosphere excited and just enjoy the moment, Doctor," she tells him in exasperation, almost pleadingly. The other two humans share a laugh, getting the meaning. All sound fades away and they enjoy a nice moment in the snow, just taking it all in.

"Well, this has been an…eventful day," Lance breaks the ice, pushing himself up to his feet. "But I should head back home now. Before Christmas ends."

"Oh, no." The Doctor turns to Donna, worry evident on his face. "I forgot, you hate Christmas."

"True, but this year…This year's wasn't so bad," the redhead tells him.

"Could've been worse," Lance shrugs, having an idea of just _how_ much worse off everything would be. "Merry Christmas, you three," he bids them farewell before walking off and away.

"Merry Christmas," the rest of them chorus back, quietly watching as he becomes smaller and smaller until he disappears into the night.

"Why don't you guys come inside? Join us for a festive dinner?" Donna offers them, getting up to her feet while the other two follow suite.

"No, I should probably head back," Robin turns down the invite. "Celebrate Christmas with my own family, you know?" Even though it wasn't even winter when she left, she hopes that the Doctor can bring her to that time.

"And I should probably take her." Both women look at him. "I mean I will take her," the Doctor hastily corrects himself.

"Okay. Will I ever see you two again?" Robin looks at the Doctor, unsure of how to answer.

"If we're lucky," he lightheartedly chuckles. But Donna nods, as if in resignation.

"Goodbye Robin, Doctor. Thanks for everything," the redhead says her goodbyes before walking towards the house they happen to be right next to.

"Goodbye, Donna Noble," the Doctor says farewell to her as well. "And Merry Christmas." He and Robin watch as Donna knocks on the front door. It swings open, revealing Geoff, who hugs his daughter and eagerly herds her inside. Before he closes the door, he catches sight of them and happily waves in their direction. They wave as well before walking back to the TARDIS.

The moment they walk back into the warmth of the ship, a wave of weariness abruptly slaps Robin. The Doctor is excitedly running around the console, mentioning something about Barcelona, but her mind simply can't focus on what he's saying. Instead, she drags herself up the walkway before setting herself down on the chair to try and stable her senses. But it doesn't work and Robin just curls up completely in the chair.

"Robin? Robin, what's wrong?" She can hear the Doctor's soft voice right next to her ear. The affection it carries soothes her a tiny bit.

"Sorry, I just…I just got tired all of a sudden," Robin tries to explain, heavily slurring her words. She feels him gently moving her hair back, behind her ear.

"That means you're going," he tells her.

"But where am I going?" Robin feels like a child again, curled up under the blankets because she's scared that monsters in the ventilation will climb down and eat her.

"To another time. Another me." The Doctor's voice is an even, caring whisper. Maybe even a bit melancholic.

"…Am I going to be okay, Doctor?" she asks him in a quivering, afraid that she doesn't know what's going to happen to her. That she's being carted off into the unknown with hardly any warning.

"Yes. No matter where you go, I promise that I'll always be there to protect you. Trust me." He's fierce and clear with his words.

"Okay," Robin nods, starting to regain some semblance of security. "Goodnight, Doctor." She closes her eyes and allows herself to go to sleep. Before she fades away completely, Robin feels the ghost of a kiss on her forehead.


	4. Terror of the Living Plastic

**Note:** This chapter is based on "Spearhead From Space" with the Third Doctor

* * *

 **Terror of the Living Plastic**

When Robin slowly drifts into consciousness, the first thing she notices is that she's in an area that's awfully bright, even with her eyes closed. Not a light-shining-in-her-face bright, but more of a light-bounces-off-everything bright. It's a stark contrast from when she fell asleep in the Doctor's grungy-looking TARDIS. And, in opening her dark eyes, she can see that she's somewhere _very_ different.

"Urgh…" the brunette groans as she rolls over on the cold, hard surface she's laying on and pushes herself up. Around her are walls of white, with a secondary wall in front full of holes, and not much else to note outside of that. Everything is clean and plain, including what's presumably the TARDIS console as well. It's like the machine went through a factory reset and is now on its most basic settings.

"…Doctor?" Robin hesitantly calls out, getting to her feet and idly walking around the room. Her fingertips graze over the controls and she notes how they're put together neatly as opposed to before. Even the central tube is nice and compact, no longer stretching up into the ceiling. "Doctor?" she calls out again, but there is no answer.

Suddenly, the screen mounted to the ceiling clicks on, revealing the backs of a couple of others. In closer inspection, the young woman deduces that they're military, judging by their tan uniforms and the guns strapped to them. She begins to worry that the TARDIS is under control and she's imprisoned. Maybe the Doctor is coming back? Or maybe she's gonna need to save herself.

Making up her mind, even tightening fists in front of her chest with a stubborn look of determination to help steel her resolve, Robin goes over to the doors and, ever so slightly, pulls them open. Just enough to peek an eye out. The ones on guard don't hear it and keep watching out front. However, when a couple of distant gunshots ring out, all of them are immediately on guard.

"Here, something's happening," one of the men murmur as the soldiers take arms and cautiously inch forward through the thick brush. They even cock their guns in preparation. But as they move further away from the spaceship, Robin sees it as her opportunity to tip-toe out of it. She's able to sneak around the police box and hide behind it somehow.

"Who's there?" she can hear the soldier shout out in warning. However, they don't give the person enough time as a shot is fired. It's so loud that Robin can feel the sound vibrations rack her body. Her ears are ringing. Scared and alert now, the brunette books it and makes a hasty escape.

"Wait! Stop right there!" But she doesn't, instead taking advantage of her short stature to weave through vines and branches men of their size would have far more trouble going through. Luckily, they don't give chase or even fire at her, allowing Robin to make a quick get-away into the woods.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

Robin, being led by the sonic screwdriver she still has(stole) from the Doctor, takes in the area she's at. It's like a little English village, complete with a dirt path and funnily shaped buildings to accommodate for the uneven ground. There's hardly anyone around, but those that she does pass stare at her in wide-eyed wonder and weirdness. Thought not exactly a pleasant experience, it's easy enough to keep going since no one bothers to even step up to her.

Ever since she exited the woods, Robin had been stuck on what to do. First things first, she obviously needed to find the Doctor and get answers. And then…Go out and do something? Maybe see her mom and dad? Either way, with that plan in mind, she pulled out the screwdriver – which she only remembered was there when she gave herself a pat down – and started scanning for alien life.

And that's how the American found herself in the village, following the hot-and-cold game the device is making her play.

"Miss Lobendino!" Robin freezes when someone calls out her last name. Whirling around, she spots two soldiers in the same tan uniform marching up to her. Almost instinctually, the brunette's hands fly up to chest-level as a show of surrender.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to run away!" she squeaks out so fast, it's almost a single word. However, she notices how they don't reach for their guns at all, even when they get closer.

"What? No, ma'am, you're not in any trouble," one of them tries to reassure her. It works, but only by a tad as she still eyes them warily despite slowly lowering her hands back to her side. "I'm Sergeant Miles and this is Sergeant Samuels of UNIT," he introduces themselves. "We've orders to take you to the Doctor once we find you."

"…What?" Robin can't help but say to all the information that's been thrown at her in a matter of seconds. Now there's something called UNIT and apparently they know her, but she doesn't know them. Lovely.

"The Doctor is this way, ma'am. We have a car nearby, ready to take you." The brunette's eyes furrow in confusion as Miles points further down the road. In the opposite direction than where the sonic is leading her to.

"Does the road curve around, by any chance?" she hopefully asks, fishing for the answers she wants.

"No ma'am," but Miles denies. "He's currently at a hospital that further towards Epping." While he claims that the Doctor's at the hospital, Robin isn't exactly _too_ worried about it. He is a doctor after all, right? Besides, there's something else entirely on her mind now.

"If the Doctor is that way, then what was I being led to?" she questions out loud. Turning on the screwdriver again, Robin slowly makes a complete circle. When it's pointed in the direction of the hospital, the device only weakly hums. But when it's pointed completely opposite of that, it's as loud as it can go.

It seems that there are _two_ alien lifeforms now. And Robin has a sinking feeling that, whoever or whatever she's being led to, isn't exactly a good thing.

"Who gave you the order to find me?" she asks the soldiers, never taking her eyes off the destination. She recalls the Doctor's words to trust her instincts. And her instinct right now is telling her that there's trouble about.

"Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart, ma'am," one of them dutifully answers.

"Could you please tell him that I'll go to the Doctor later?" Robin politely requests.

"But we have orders to take you to him," Samuels points out in the same respectful tone.

"With all due respect, sergeants, but there is something out there leading me _away_ from him. If you will just allow me a few minutes to check it out, I promise I'll follow you wherever you need me," Robin proposes. The two look at each other, communicating a plan through the silent thinking.

"Very well, ma'am," Samuels nods. "I will accompany you to where you need to go, and Miles will send word to the Brigadier. Would this be acceptable, ma'am?"

"Yeah, I have no problems with this," Robin agrees with a shrug, only now noticing how different their speech is. All the "ma'am" business is unusual for her for she's not used to receiving it at all. Miles gives her a salute, palm facing outward, before turning on his heel and marching away.

"Lead the way, ma'am." And with that, Robin turns on the sonic screwdriver and allows the little device to lead herself and Samuels down the rocky road. It's quiet between them, awkwardly so. "If you don't mind me asking, ma'am, what _is_ that?" he points to the sonic, breaking the silence.

"It's the Doctor's sonic screwdriver," Robin immediately takes up the chance to try and expel the awkwardness. But it's probably only something she's feeling since Samuels holds himself too professionally. "It scans stuff, messes with tech, and unlocks doors." The sergeant hums with a nod, accepting the answer.

It's hush again – apart from sonic hums and distant nature callings – and Robin mentally twiddles her thumbs. "So, uh…" she fishes for a topic. "You know you don't have to, uh, refer to me as 'ma'am' every time. I'm not saying that you're not allowed to! Just that you can also use my name too."

"That's very generous of you, ma'am, but – if it's all the same to you – I would like to keep the titles. You are, after all, ranks above me and I respect that." Robin blinks at that. She had originally thought that she was more of an associate of UNIT through the Doctor, not actually _in_ UNIT.

"What is UNIT anyway?"

"UNIT stands for United Intelligence Taskforce. We operate under the United Nations to investigate and combat extraterrestrial threats to the Earth."

"So you guys are like black ops forces or something, right? Huh. I guess that explains the guns." Unconsciously, Robin leans a tad away from the weapon once it's mentioned.

Robin and Samuels eventually make it to a funky white house that's by itself, right on the edge of the woods. Scanning across the structure, the sonic picks up a presence in the outhouse made of bricks. The two glance at each other, readying themselves for a confrontation, before stepping up to the cottage. Though Robin knocks first, her knocks are soft and go unanswered, prompting Samuels to bang on the door with his fist.

That gets the intended response as, only a second and some shuffling later, an elderly woman with a flowery handkerchief around head opens the door with annoyance.

"Well? What do you want?" she impatiently demands. Robin is taken aback by the woman's brisk attitude, a fact that shows on her face, but her partner remains professionally steadfast.

"Good evening, ma'am," the brunette cordially greets her nonetheless, even bowing her head for more effect. "We apologize for bothering you, but we're investigating the area for any strange occurrences."

"What occurrences?" the woman leans against the door frame. Robin opens her mouth, but nothing comes out. Luckily, Samuels steps up to her rescue.

"I'm sure you've heard of the meteorites, ma'am?" The elderly woman nods. "Well, my colleague and I believe that some may have fallen around this area and we would appreciate it if you were to allow us to search the grounds."

The old lady looks like she's about to deny them access but stops herself. Her eyes drift over Samuels attire, gaze lingering on the gun strapped to his side. Even she can see that he's an official. With a single nod, she pushes the door wider and allows the two entrance.

"We won't be long," Robin says to her before turning on the sonic. Its whirring leads her through the cottage – where the other two had to keep ducking their heads under the small doorways to keep up with her – and eventually out the back. Once there, they see an older man crouched in front of the outhouse.

"Sam!" The man jolts to attention and whips around. At the sight of Robin and Samuels, he scowls.

"Well? Who the hell are you lot, then?" he rudely demands as he rises to his feet. The small woman eyes widen, affronted by how crude the elderly are being to them.

"Good evening, sir," Samuels greets him in the same monotone as before. "We're just here to investigate the meteorite sightings. We won't be long." Sam's mouth works into a tight line in contemplation, but he eventually takes a large step off to the side.

"Fine then. Hurry it up." The brunette eyes him suspiciously. It's obvious that the old guy is trying to hide something but is confident enough that they won't find it. But, unfortunately for him, they have the power of alien tech on their side. So, with the sonic on, Robin and Samuels open the outhouse and uncover a chest right inside.

When they uncover the chest, they uncover a globe with a pulsating red light that's consistently beeping steadily. The old woman gasps in shock and Sam tries to intervene, but Samuels glare freezes him.

"What's this, then?" Robin murmurs, pocketing the sonic and taking the globe up in both her hands. It's made from plastic, not heavy at all, and she can feel a faint energy coming from whatever is inside.

"It's just something from our neighbor. Asked me to watch over it until he gets back," Sam fibs in a snippy voice. And even though she and Samuels know it's a straight lie, he continues, "Put it back! I can't have you dropping it."

"I'm sorry, sir, but I'm pretty sure this doesn't belong to either you or your neighbor," Robin apologizes, holding the orb closer.

"And how do I know you're not looking to rob me?" the old man sneers at them. He takes a stomp forward, causing the dark-skinned woman to flinch back. Before he can take another step, Samuels intervenes by holding out an arm. The men send each other scathing glares and Robin frantically worries if things are going to get physical.

"With all due respect, sir," Samuels begins in a cold, clipped tone, "these orbs have fallen from the sky and are of unknown origin. We don't know who is looking for them and how far they will go to get them. So I highly suggested that, for your and your wife's safety, you let us handle it." Sam's sneer just becomes even more twisted.

"Oh, just give it to them, Sam. What were you planning to do with that thing? We don't even know what it is!" the man's little wife scolds him. A few seconds pass in tense silence. Eventually, the civilian relents and steps off to the side in grumbles.

To be safe, Samuels partially uses his body as a shield and allows Robin to pass first, which she does so with quiet words of thanks to all parties.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

" –It was the Doctor they shot, but the wound is nothing more than a graze," Samuels finishes the whole story. He and Robin are in the back of a car with another UNIT soldier, Forbes, behind the wheel.

"But he's okay now, right?" Robin needs to make sure.

"As far as the doctors at the hospital can tell." And the brunette nods in understanding of that. As an alien capable of coming back to life, he's most likely got a completely different biology than humans. Hopefully they aren't trying to dissect him or anything. Robin tenses at that thought. "Is something wrong, ma'am?"

"They aren't, like…cutting him open or anything, right?" she worriedly asks. But Samuels just lets out a slight chuckle.

"No, nothing of the sort, ma'am. The doctors at the hospital have been quite good to him, giving him space to heal and sleep."

"That's good, that's good," Robin nods in relief. Her eyes roam back to the pulsating plastic globe, the beeping having been mere background noise for a while now. There's some sort of energy coming from it, like it's alive somehow.

"Rest assured, ma'am, the Brigadier would never let them try anything on the Doctor under his watch," Samuels points out and Robin can't help the soft smile on her face at hearing the amount of trust and respect the sergeant had for this Brigadier. With the limited knowledge she's garnered so far, he sounds like a good man.

"Do you think that…" Robin trails off, suspicious chimes dully going off in her mind. The sergeant tries to get her attention, but she's not focused on him. Instead, all her mind can consciously register is the distant echoing of heavy footsteps through thick foliage, coming towards them at a steady rate.

The mental warning bells are eerily like what happened in the underwater Torchwood lab. Her dark eyes are drawn to the side of the road and she spots a flash of gold through the leaves.

"Stop the car! Stop it!" she frantically shouts, leaping forward and grabbing the driver's shoulder. He reacts immediately, and all three passengers are thrown forward by the abrupt brakes. And just in time too. Out from the dense foliage steps a person in a dark blue jumpsuit.

"Hey! Get out of the road!" Forbes, the soldier up front, impatiently honks the horn. But the person doesn't move. Robin remains sitting up, cautiously observing. She pales in realization that the guy blocking their path is unusually shiny and its eye sockets are hollow.

"Drive," she lowly commands Forbes. "Forget about that thing and just drive. Run it over if you have to." The driver sputters, trying to question the insane request. The windshield suddenly explodes and the car jolts. Robin shrieks in terror and is dragged behind the front seats by Samuels for cover.

"Dammit, man! Drive!" he shouts, covering the woman's body with his own. The driver didn't need any more convincing and the car heavily swerves around their assailant and zooms off. They can hear shots firing off behind them, one even managing to strike the rear and shake the car.

"Ah! Don't go to the hospital!" Robin lifts her head.

"What? Why?" Forbes doesn't look back, speeding down the road.

"If that thing is following us, we can't let it near there."

"She's got a point. For now, let's head back to the labs and deliver the orb," Samuels nods in agreement. With a nod of understanding, the soldier takes them where they need to be.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

The three make it to UNIT headquarters without any more incidents. And with the soldiers' identifications, as well as Samuels vouching for her, they make it inside without any troubles. Forbes goes off to make his report while she and Samuels are led off to the laboratory, the latter holding a box containing the plastic sphere.

"Miss Lobendino. Good to see you again," a man with a mustache and stick greets them the moment they step inside. Looking past him, Robin sees an older woman working with the equipment, her auburn hair in a clean updo, and an old man in something like a cape alongside her. At the words, the old man whips around to look at them, an enormous grin overtaking his face the moment his eyes fall on her.

"Brigadier, sir," Samuels snaps to attention, further straightening his back. If his hands were free, he would've saluted too.

"Robin, my dear," the old man puts the glass beakers on the table and practically jogs to her side, completely ignoring everyone else. He manages to stop himself from crashing into her. "What do you think of my new face?" he asks with giddiness, greatly flexing his facial muscles this way and that. Then, he focusses on the eyebrows, wiggling them like only a professional could. "Don't you agree?"

"What?" Robin blinks up at him, feeling lost. No doubt that this man is the Doctor, but she can't quite follow the abrupt jump in question.

"That was Delphon for 'we seem to be right in the middle of another mess'," says the Doctor.

"But you didn't say anything?" Her eyebrows furrow in confusion.

"You don't remember Delphon? The planet where they communicate with their eyebrows?" Before she can answer, however, someone else beats her to it.

"Doctor, you claimed that _you_ can't remember anything," the man that greeted them earlier, no doubt the illustrious Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart, cuts in.

"And I wasn't lying. I _don't_ remember anything. However, Robin isn't _just_ an anything. Come along, dear." The Doctor grasps her hand and pulls her further into the lab, back to where he was before. All Robin can do is give a sheepish smile to the exasperated officer as they pass him. "Robin, Liz. Liz, Robin," he introduces the women with low gestures.

"Hello, Miss Liz," the brunette politely addresses, giving her a firm handshake. Her eyes flicker down to the table, to which she notices spherical shards of plastic in trays.

"Oh, just Liz is fine. Please," the scientist laughs.

"Anyway, I heard you managed to find one of those spheres that feel from the sky. Intact, at that." Samuels steps right up and puts the box down on the table with a sizable _thunk_.

"It's in here, sir." Samuels flips the lid open with a flick of his wrist, revealing the pulsating pink plastic globe. With careful hands, the Doctor lifts the sphere up by his fingertips, bringing it extremely close to his face and curiously turning it over and over.

"What do you think it is?" Robin breaks the silence, leaning against the table on her elbows.

"A literal ball of energy," answers the Doctor as he gently sets the sphere down on the table. He turns back to the Brigadier and says, "Unfortunately, I can't tell much without proper equipment." Remembering the screwdriver, Robin reaches into her pocket to pull it out. However, she's stopped when the Timelord, without even looking back, holds her hand steady.

"Very well, we'll deliver more equipment for you to use down here." The Brigadier then turns on his heel, intending to leave.

"Actually, Brigadier," the Doctor calls out to him, forcing the man to stop and partially turn back. "It would be much easier if you could return the TARDIS key and I can use the lateral molecular rectifier." Slowly, the UNIT soldier fully turns around, levelling the alien with a cool gaze.

"What on Earth's that?" Liz speaks up.

"Not on Earth, unfortunately. But I think I have one in the TARDIS. It'll only take me a second to see." The Doctor holds out his hand expectantly.

"And how do I know that you're not just going to leave the moment I give it to you?" the Brigadier challenges.

"Well, I can't exactly leave without investigating first. I did give you my word." Robin eyes him with unsure incredulity. Even if she had just met this particular Doctor, she has an inkling that he's not _exactly_ telling the truth. Ever so slowly, the mustached-man pulls a key out from his breast pocket and holds it up for all to see.

He steps forward, and the Doctor's grin widens. However, it immediately falls when the Brigadier very deliberately walks past him and to Robin. He takes the brunette's hand and firmly places the key in her palm, wrapping her fingers over it.

"Only let the Doctor use this if one of you is staying behind. Understand?" Robin nods up at him. The Brigadier gives the Doctor one final, stern look before sweeping out of the room with Samuels in tow. The second he's gone, the Doctor whips around to face Robin.

"Now, my dear, if you could just go into the TARDIS and get the lateral molecular rectifier for me." Robin purses her lips and hesitates to move. Did he really need it or was it just a ruse?

"Why can't you go and get it?" Liz questions the alien.

"I would if I could, problem is I don't quite remember if I have it or not. And if I do, I can't think of how it looks like. But I'm sure you know what I'm talking about, Robin. We must've used on some time in the past. Or was it the future?" The small woman gains a deer-in-the-headlights look when faced with the Doctor's optimism in her.

"I…" she struggles to find the right words. "I have no idea what you're talking about. I don't even understand those words put together." The Doctor blankly blinks several times.

"What? Given how useful a rectifier is, I'm quite certain that we have used it before." Not exactly the response Robin was hoping for. Too late now though.

"This is the third time I've met you, Doctor. I don't know what any of this is," Robin half-heartedly gestures to the scientific tools in the room, "let alone alien tech." The Doctor takes a staggering step back but manages to recover before he takes another step.

"No, no," he denies, causing Robin to frown. She didn't expect his denial to hurt so much. "You must know what I'm talking about. You always do."

Instead of giving the man a straight answer, Robin pulls out the sonic screwdriver. She points it at herself and lets it whir. After a second of roaming the blue light over her body, she hands it off to the Doctor. He looks at it. His gaze darts between her and the scan in disbelief. He tries to scan her again. And again. And again.

"I'm…" the Doctor trails off. Instead of continuing his sentence, the Timelord just hands the screwdriver back. "Why don't I go and look for the rectifier and you, uh…keep watch of things here?" Keeping his gaze, Robin slowly hands the key over. Despite what the Brigadier had hinted at earlier and how the Doctor now seems uncomfortable around her, he wouldn't just leave. Right?

"Are you alright?" Robin flinches at the sound of Liz's concerned voice. She looks over and finds that the woman had managed to come closer in her brief daze.

"Yeah," she forlornly sighs. "It's just…I'm starting to realize just how much of a mess time travel really is."

"You're not the person he's expecting you to be," the scientist deduces. In the back of her mind, Robin finds it amazing how Liz can just go with the flow like this, going from aliens to time travel.

"His past my future, my past his future. I don't know how my future self managed to do this. Or is managing. Or will manage. Something." Her dark eyes unconsciously lower themselves in self doubt and resignation. But they snap back up at a very specific _wheezing_ sound. A sound that she had only heard a couple of times before, but from the _inside_. Not the outside.

Robin's chest painfully tightens at the betrayal. Liz only needs a glimpse of her heartbroken expression to understand what's going on.

"Doctor!" The older woman rushes forward and pounds against the blue door. However, she's forced to step away as smoke starts to spill from the machine, followed by something crashing deep inside. The wheezing begins to die down, rather pathetically at that.

And it only takes a second for the door to slowly open up, more smoke billowing from inside. Hesitatingly, awkwardly, the Doctor steps out. His gaze flickers between Liz and Robin, before lowering themselves down in shame as he lightly clears his throat. He tries to smile, yet it falls before it can form.

"Just testing," he says, not meeting anyone's eyes. "I…wanted to see if the controls–"

Robin hastily escapes from the lab before he can finish.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

Robin slowly walks out of the restroom, wiping any lingering tears out from her eyes. When she's certain that there is no longer a trace of wetness, the brunette lets her hands fall back to her side with a shuddering sigh. She plops down on a nearby bench and holds her head in her hands, contemplating the recent past.

While the Doctor had hinted that his younger selves weren't going to be as kind as he was, she didn't expect that sort of reaction. Was being so young as offensive as he seemed to take it? Is it because she didn't know all the science that he believes she should?

"Are you alright, miss?" Robin's head snaps up and she sees a man in a business suit, looking down at her in worry.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm just fine," she tries to reassure him. "I'm sorry, did you want to sit down to?" Even before she's finished speaking, she's already moving to the side of the bench to give the man some room. He takes the empty space with a word of thanks.

"That accent…you're from America, aren't you?" he asks, to which Robin nods in confirmation. The stranger brightens up a tad at that. "You know, I just came back from a six month business trip in America. Granted, I only had the time to tour through Los Angeles and the surrounding areas, but what I saw was breathtaking." Suddenly, he turns back to her. "Where in America are you from?"

"I'm actually from California," Robin answers with a soft smile, fondly remembering her parents and the small town she grew up in.

"Really? Where from? Do you live close to Los Angeles?" the man in the business suit enthusiastically questions. With such an eager tone, the young woman doesn't have it in her to find his interrogation annoying.

"No, further up north. About a five-to-six hour drive, give or take. The college that I go to is closer, along the bay."

"Really? That must be beautiful, studying by the water." The man has a wistful look on his face, imagining her circumstances. "It's one of the reasons why I wanted to partner with an American company. If the deal went through, I would've moved in a heartbeat. I've never been out of the country before and I thought it would've been a good change for me."

"What was the deal about, if you don't mind me asking?" Robin finally voices her curiosity after a bit of contemplation. She understands that he's not a UNIT operative, so she wonders why he's here in the first place.

"I started up a plastics factory with my partner a while back. We make plastic dolls and we were looking to expand our market and go global. Figured America was our best shot."

"So why are you here at UNIT, then?"

"Well…" the man in the business suit briefly pauses, looking deeply troubled. "My partner sacked me even before I returned. I went to the factory to try and talk to him, but everything was different. New production lines, switching over to automation. But the worst part was my office. I snuck back into the factory and had to break into my office with a crowbar. The sign on the door said it was security, but what I saw in there wasn't security at all!

"It was…Oh, I don't know! There was a line of mannequins that looked exactly the same, along with this large machine with dials and buttons. And when I turned around, one of the mannequins – a creature – had stepped off the platform and started coming towards me! It took off its hand and started firing. I barely escaped!"

The brunette thinks back to her own experiences with plastic creatures. "Did the mannequin chasing you have dark blue clothes? And the hand it was shooting from, was it the right hand?"

"Yes," he slowly nods in agreement. "Yes, now that you bring it up, yes!"

Robin leans back and rests her head against the white wall in thought. Without a doubt, the plastic factory the man ran away from is the root of the situation. More than likely, it's being used to create more of the mannequins that attacked her, Sergeant Samuels and Forbes, when they were driving. And his former partner knows what's going on.

Assuming that he had already shared the story with the Brigadier and whoever else was in charge, then what's stopping them from storming into the factory? Why isn't anyone getting geared up? They've got the globe, along with key witnesses. At the very least, it's a lot more evidence than what she had on Lance before.

"Where's the plastic factory?" Robin blurts out before she can stop herself. Why did she say that?

"It's at the edge of the city, on the opposite end from here." The young woman shoots up, idly clasping her hands together. "Why?"

"I'm just…" What's she planning to do? "I'm gonna check out that factory, of course. Never hurts to take a second look."

"I can't let you do that! It's too dangerous!" He's right. It _is_ dangerous. "Besides, you don't look like you're a soldier of UNIT. Who are you, anyway?"

"Robin Lobendino. And you're right, I'm not a soldier. I'm a…consultant on–on other earthly matters. Anything that seems alien, I'm called in." Technically, it's the _Doctor_ who's called in by the look of things. But, given that she's somehow tied to him, she's not exactly lying. Hopefully.

"So you know what those things were?" the stranger immediately asks.

"I can't say for sure, which is why I need to take a closer look." Not that it would matter. Her knowledge of the extraterrestrial, as extremely limited as it is, won't help give her any answers. And she knows this. This is why it's a terrible idea.

"Well, knowing that does make me feel better, I suppose." Robin smiles and offers the man her hand, which he takes to help him get back on his feet.

"Great. Let's get going."

 **.o0o.o0o.**

"Take a left up ahead." Samuels follows Ransome's instructions and makes the turn. Immediately, they spot the factory, just a bit further down the road.

"We should park here and walk the rest of the way, so they don't spot our vehicle," Robin suggests. When the car stops running, the three hop out and look at the factory. "Mister Ransome, you can wait in the car. Samuels and I can take it from here," she advises the business man.

"No, I need to know what's going on in my factory. I need to make sure Channing is okay," he strongly insists. "We probably won't be able to get through the front door, but luckily there's a spot around the back where you can jump over the fence." Ransome quickly walks off and Robin's about to follow, but a hand on her arm holds her back.

"Ma'am, are you sure about this?" Samuels questions her in a hushed tone. "The Brigadier has tried to call General Scobie for further action."

"Yes, but General Scobie has already denied him access. The only thing he can do now is try to go over his head and contact someone in a higher position." Before they left, Robin thought it best to at least tell the Brigadier where she was going. However, she overheard his conversation with the General and decided – rather impulsively at that – that she can do a bit of investigating on her own. If she's going to hopping around time like the Doctor said, she needs to start pulling her own weight. "You should stay behind. I'll take care of things from here."

"I don't think that wise, ma'am," the soldier immediately shoots down her suggestion. "I'll feel better knowing that there's someone to protect you." Robin gratefully smiles in thanks and the two quickly jog over to Ransome's location. Together, all of them climb over the wall and scurry over to the backdoor.

"I used a crowbar to break the door last time. Hold on," Ransome starts to look around for another similar tool but stops when he sees Robin whip out the sonic screwdriver and activate it. There's the exaggerated noise of a lock clicking open and she easily pulls the door aside. "What did you do?"

"I…unlocked it. Using this sonic device," she tries to explain. But how does one explain alien when they don't exactly understand alien themselves? Poorly, apparently.

"Incredible. You really know your stuff, huh?" Robin slowly puts the sonic away, consciously untightening her grip on the instrument to let it go.

"Yeah, I do." Or she will. And this will be her first step. It's gotta be. Cautiously, the trio move through the factory and to the security room. It wasn't hard, considering that there wasn't a living soul in the entire facility. Every part of the production lines were handled by machinery.

"Is this factory only making dolls?" Samuels ask, cautiously eyeing the little baby heads with empty eye sockets. It's eerie to see a perfect line of them, rushing past you on a conveyer belt.

"No, we also make shop mannequins by request. We recently had a commission to make important political figures for Madame Tussauds' display room."

"So it wouldn't be weird to see a life-sized mannequin in the factory then," Robin points out as she follows Ransome up some metal stairs. But she looks back to see Samuels still at the foot of the stairs, eyes wide in horror.

"I need to inform the Brigadier of this immediately. Ma'am, please stay here. I'll be back immediately." The UNIT soldier flees back the way they came from without further word.

"What's wrong with him?" Ransome asks her.

"Nothing, just some news that needs to be passed along." Robin pushes herself up the stairs. Even without Samuels, she can still do this. She needs to.

"But he said to wait," the business man reminds her, stopping her.

"I…" One last out before going in. "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing. I'll keep you safe," Robin pats the sonic in her pocket for emphasis, giving the man a reassuring smile. So, without taking the out, the two continue onward. They eventually make it to the security room that Ransome mentioned and, with the help of the screwdriver, they're able to make it in without any trouble.

"There. It was one of those that attacked me," the man frantically points at the identical mannequins lined up along the wall, staying as far away from them as possible. Keeping a careful eye on them, Robin goes over to the large structure in the center. For a precaution, she scans the plastic models. "What does that tell you?"

"Nothing. These are just normal models." Except that it's not true. Rather, she couldn't understand the information displayed on the sonic. She might've been able to use it to do stuff, that part was easy. But using it to scan like the Doctor freely did is proving to be infinitely harder. "Mister Ransome, you should go now."

"But what about you?"

"I-I still need to investigate some things here. Why don't you try to find your partner? Somehow convince him to leave this place?" she tries to give him a way out. Only now is Robin realizing how terribly _wrong_ she was for acting out on her own like this. She could die here and now because of it. But that doesn't mean others have to suffer because of her choice.

"Okay, I'll go–"

 _Tunk!_

Robin and Ransome's head whir around to face the sound. From the line of identical mannequins, they see three stepping off the platform, guns revealed and pointed at them.

"Run!" Robin screams out and the two high-tail it out of the room. She even uses the sonic to lock the door to hopefully buy them some time. They bound down the stairs and Ransome literally crashes into Samuels at the base.

"What the bloody hell is going on?!" the sergeant demands. They hear something slam upstairs, immediately followed by the sight of the three mannequins at the top of the stairs. Samuels lifts up a gun and fires at them, allowing Robin and Ransome to duck behind him and to a cover. However, the bullets only slow their descent. "Come on, we need to move!"

After that, it's a blur of adrenaline for Robin. Samuels tells them that he called for backup and it should be arriving soon. But for her, it's just background noise. Her main objective is getting them to safety from the killer plastic dolls. And when she briefly glances over her shoulder in her mad dash, there are more than three at their heels.

But it was in that brief glance that she sees it; a hand aimed not at them, but up at the ceiling. It fires and Robin can only see a blur of gray swinging down.

"Look out!" she screams, harshly shoving Ransome to the side. His utter confusion is the last thing she sees before pain explodes at her side and she feels herself flying before blacking out.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

 _Beep…beep…beep…_

Robin groggily reawakens to a steady beat and dull pain all over her body. It takes a moment for her vision to clear, but when it does, she immediately takes note that she's no longer in the factory. She's in a white room, on a bed. Maybe the hospital?

"You're finally awake." The young woman turns her head to the side to see the Doctor crossing the room and stopping beside the bed. "Gave us quite the scare with your stunt." Robin flinches at the last word. A _stunt_. She risked lives in a (misguided) attempt to force herself to become the person the Doctor expected her to be. And for all of that to only be called a _stunt_?

Her dark eyes feel watery with the guilt growing in her gut.

"What happened to Samuels and mister Ransome?" her voice is no more than a raspy whisper. The Doctor sits at the edge of the bed, looking a bit hesitant.

"Ransome is fine…If not a bit traumatized. He's currently talking with others in UNIT about getting his life back on track," he summarizes for her.

"What about his partner? Channing?" Robin recalls the businessman's reasons for following her in the first place. But the Doctor shook his head.

"He was under mind control. The moment we arrived, it was too late for him." Robin let out a shuttering breath, hesitating on her next words. She already knows that it's not good news.

"…Samuels…?"

"He–" the Doctor hesitates, looking conflicted about telling her. "He managed to carry you out, but…an Auton shot him and…" Robin looks away, a whimper escaping her lips.

Someone paid the ultimate price for her rash decisions…

"I'd…I'd like to be alone now. Please," she brokenly pleads. The tears won't stop coming, but she keeps her crying as quiet as possible, aware that she's in the presence of another. The Doctor gets back up to his feet without a fight.

"Right. Of course. I'll be on my way then." Robin continues staring at the ceiling, only listening to his footsteps to know. However, he stops right as the sound of a sliding door occurs. "And Robin? I'm…I'm sorry. For everything." She only nods, numbly. But it's enough of an indication for the Doctor and he leaves without a word.

Now alone, Robin allows herself to sob freely for Samuels. For the weight of her own sins. She would have liked to crawl into a ball on the bed, but the burning sensations in her body from being knocked out are still present, forcing her to remain still.

The time traveler doesn't know how long she weeps, but she knows it keeps going until a familiar weariness and darkness overtakes her.


	5. A Short Rest

**Note:** This is an original chapter

* * *

 **A Short Rest**

When Robin opens her eyes, she doesn't know where she is. Now that the pain is gone and her body feels fine, she pushes herself up and looks around. It's colorful again. Instead of the stark white walls and ceilings, the room glows in warm amber. There are various cabinets, drawers, and machineries everywhere. It's a mess, really, but a well-lived one by the looks of it.

Robin gradually shifts out of the bed, finally realizing where she is. The TARDIS med-bay. It certainly looks different from the last time she was here. Brighter, less grungy. Ever so slowly, she follows the light patterns beneath the glass floor. They lead her out the room and down several hallways.

"They're boring-ers! They're blue boring-ers!"

"If you had just taken the time to read the manual, you would know that they were stabalizers."

She hears voices – a man and a woman – arguing. It makes her hesitate, but she doesn't know what else to do. So she quietly moves through the hall and stops right at the mouth of it, just enough to see what's going on.

It's another version of the main room; completely different but still as messy as the first time around. There are three people, two up in each other's faces while the third is just sitting at the chair. It's a blonde woman in a black dress, a ginger woman in a red sweatshirt, and a version of the Doctor that she only briefly met in London.

The one seated idly glances around, looking disinterested in other's quarrel. Her eyes eventually found Robin standing there, who flinches at being noticed. But the woman doesn't mind. Instead, she immediately brightens up and carefully sneaks around the two to get to her.

"Hey, how're you feeling?" she quietly asks, and Robin can already identify her accent as Scottish.

"Uhm…I'm fine," the brunette answers with some hesitation, letting out an uneasy smile.

"Good. That's good," the woman nods approvingly. Then her face falls a little. "Do you, maybe…know me?" she asks with anxious hope. But Robin regretfully shakes her head and her smile is gone completely. "Right. Of course. The Doctor told me about this earlier. I shouldn't have gotten my hopes up." Now the woman looks like a kicked puppy trying to convince her that she's still okay, making Robin feel doubly horrible.

"W-we can get to know each other right now!" she tries to bring up a solution. And the woman relaxes with a little smile.

"Yeah, let's do that." She holds out a hand. "Amy Pond," she introduces herself. And Robin gives that hand a firm shake.

"Robin Lobendino."

"Robin!" Said brunette jumps at the abrupt shout. She looks over to see the Doctor, giddily bounding over to them and up the stairs. But he halts a few steps below. "How are you feeling?" he asks in both excitement and caution. If this was a future version of him, then he probably knew what had happened.

Filled with anxiousness, all Robin can do is nod. The events of when she was last awake are still too raw for her and facing the Doctor just keeps the wounds open. She'll need some time to…recalibrate, or something. Luckily, the woman in the black dress steps between them, hand held out and a charming smile on her face.

"Doctor River Song. It's a pleasure to meet you. And please, just call me 'River.'" Robin takes the hand gratefully, hearing no lies in River's words. She didn't seem to feel bothered by her lack of recognition and she likes that. River studies her expression for a second. "Doctor, I change my mind," she calls over her shoulder, going back down the stairs and to the console.

Confused by the change in flow, the three follow. Robin and Amy hand back while the Doctor pushes some buttons and levers on the console, preventing the machine from leaving.

"Change your mind on what? We just landed and you were adamant about following the ship before," he argues. The woman yanks him down and speaks in a low, sharp whisper.

"–time machine–traumatized–destress–" Robin's hearing was never all too great, so she can only pick up peculiar sounding words. The Doctor lifts his head to take a peek at Robin before immediately dashing around River and punching his own code into the machine.

"Brilliant idea! And I know just the place!" he hollers. The TARDIS starts to quiver and shake, the wheezing sound going off and getting louder. Robin and Amy hang onto the railing for stability while the Doctor and River get to work on the console.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

It felt surreal, being back home. It was her mom that opened the door, right in the middle of making the lumpia and pancit palabok that she had promised for dinner earlier. The kitchen was a mess, but the small Filipina was quick to tidy what she could to make room. The gesture was so familiar to Robin.

Nothing was out of place and it was like she had never left. Robin was tempted to call her adventures a dream, had it not been for the presence of the other three. At the moment, her mom and Amy were at the kitchen table chatting –

"How's Rory, by the way?"  
"Oh, he's doing fine. Just…struggling. By the way, he told me to tell you that he says, 'thank you'. Those notes really helped him in his last test."  
"Well, nursing is a challenging profession. I'm glad he's managing to get through."

–while the latter happily munches on some of the already-made lumpia, scooping up a generous amount of the sweet chili sauce. The ease of motion and lack of questioning made Robin think the Scottish ginger has eaten the food numerous times before.

And the Doctor and River remain in the living room, going through photo albums that were inside the coffee table. Similar to Amy, neither act like they're out of place at all. They're comfortable. And her mom is comfortable with them being comfortable.

The only person who isn't is Robin herself, standing at the junction between both rooms. Alone. That sense of familiarity from earlier? It was bittersweet. Even the strong smell of home, something that used to calm her down whenever she came back, was like a dull knife against her rib cage. It's hard to accept it, but the reality was that she was the one unfamiliar now. With a silent sigh, Robin turns and retreats back to her bedroom.

The room was the same as ever; pale pink walls and flowery pastel purple bedsheets. Perhaps like everyone else, her bedroom was a safe haven from the world. A place where she can truly unwind. And, even with the changes in her life, Robin was glad that the feeling was still there. So she closed the white door, took off her jeans, and snuggled deep into the blankets.

Even though it was a hot afternoon, the heat of the thick comforters was comfortable and brought her to a state of drowsiness. Not sleeping, yet not conscious of the physical world. Just drifting by, too mentally drained to do anything else.

Robin doesn't know how long she stays there, but she only gets back up and puts on her pants when she hears the sound of the garage door opening. It's more out of instinct than anything. She leaves to meet her dad, noticing that the Doctor is following her out.

"Doctor!" her dad calls out in cheery surprise as he steps out of the truck as the trunk swings open. Robin goes straight to the back and starts taking grocery bags into her hands to bring inside. But the Doctor goes over to him and clasps him on the shoulder.

"It's good to see you again, sir," the Doctor greets.

"Oh, enough of that. You here to help out?"

"Of course." The Doctor walks around and joins Robin, taking the heavier stuff out. They walk back inside together, but in silence. The time jumper doesn't know what to think of seeing the alien be so…family-ish… Even Amy points it out when they set the groceries down on the kitchen table.

"Didn't know you could be domestic like this," the ginger teases.

"I can be domestic," the Doctor scoffs. "I just choose not to be, most of the time."

"Like how you just _chose_ to toss that toast at a poor cat? Not exactly 'dad material' if you ask me." Robin ignores the rest of the conversation in favor of putting the food away and tying the bags up for later use. In the middle of it, her dad comes up to her and puts an arm around her shoulders. She weakly smiles at the _familiar_ contact.

"Hey sweetie. How long are you guys planning to stay?" he casually asks.

"I…I don't know. The Doctor wanted…to take care of something. I guess." The Doctor didn't exactly explain it to her. Just said something about needing a breather before hurrying them out the TARDIS and to the front door.

"Well, your car is still be the lake if you want to pick it up."

"It is?" How long has it been since she 'disappeared'? While nothing really happens in the sleepy town, an unlocked car can't exactly last long on its own.

"Yeah, why don't we go and get it?" Robin looks back at the Doctor, who's talking to Amy and her mom, before nodding to her dad and walking to the garage.

"Sure, let's go."

 **.o0o.o0o.**

"You actually came out to get me," Robin comments as she looks over her shoulders to see the Doctor approaching her. Because of the evening heat, his tweed jacket was nowhere in sight.

"It's been a few hours since you went to get your car. Everyone's worried," the Doctor briefly explains, taking a seat next to her in the grass. "Not up for fishing?" Robin shook her head. He most likely knows that she fished to relax herself, take her mind off things. But not this time. When she and her dad arrived, she packed up her equipment and asked to be left alone to her thoughts.

As much as she wanted to distract herself, it felt wrong to do so.

"Do my parents not know this is my first 'jump'?" she asked, fiddling with the pocket watch. It was on the floor of the car, ticking away without a care in the world. If she didn't have this, would she have been safe? Would the Smith couple have no reason to…do what they did, whatever 'it' was exactly?

"No. I did tell them to expect that you'll pop off soon though and to keep going as they always had." Robin slowly nods.

"Dr. Smith." The Doctor's head swivels to face her, but she's still staring out at the water. "Right before this all started, you called mom one last time. Was that when you told them?" There's neither hostility or blame in her voice. Just a tired plea for solid answers.

"…Yes."

"Why not tell me? Or tell them to tell me?"

"I-I couldn't. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, Robin. I really am. But the changes would've been too great." Of course. It would've been too simple, after all. And nothing is simple anymore, is it? The Doctor lifts a hand, as if to give a consoling pat, but slowly puts it back down. Unsure. "Are you angry?"

"I don't know," Robin answers truthfully. Right now, her head's a mess and it leaves her heart empty. "I certainly feel betrayed that everyone but me knows. It depresses me to think that no one could have helped prepare me for…for any of this. Not even a passing phrase, just…throwing me straight into the deep end when I'm not ready."

"I'm…I'm sorry." The Doctor can't seem to say anything more than apologies, even if they sound sincere. Robin doesn't want to hear it right now.

"What's going to happen to Samuels?" she changes the subject and the Doctor takes a moment to remember whom she's referring to.

"He was–" he abruptly stops himself, " _is_ going to be given a military burial for his services. His division from UNIT will be in attendance, along with family and friends." The brunette purses her lips, deep in thought. It's silent for a few moments, tense in its sorrow.

"Can we go?" she suddenly asks, the words coming out before she can register them. But, thinking them over, it feels right to ask. Albeit painful.

"Now?"

"Yeah." Robin nods with absolution.

"You know the TARDIS is a time machine too. We don't have to go until you're ready."

"I know, but…It doesn't feel right. It'd be wrong." Why should she only get the luxury to wait until the pain is nothing more than a dull memory, already healed over with time? To Robin, it's the highest form of disrespect to those left living.

"Okay." Both she and the Doctor rise to her feet and go to the car. The Time Lord keeps his silence, sending furtive glances during the drive back. She knows he wants to say something, but he knows that he can't risk breaking her fragile resolve.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

"Miss Lobendino." Robin looks over to see it's Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart in a ceremonial uniform. The funeral had just ended, and people were beginning to disperse. Much to her surprise, however, most of the attendees were UNIT personnel. It didn't look like Samuels had a family of his own or many friends outside his work.

"Mister…Brigadier," she greets him, unsure of how to call him.

"Just 'Brigadier' is fine. Is the Doctor with you?"

"No, I…I asked him to hand back. He was distinctly uncomfortable." Robin noticed it in the TARDIS wardrobe as she was changing to black clothes, how he hung back and looked at her for guidance. "And this is something I needed to do without him."

"Do you feel that you got the closure you were looking for?"

"Not entirely. But it's a start," she slowly answers. Will she ever get closure? Most likely not. Her sins will stay with her for the rest of her life. Will she be able to move on? Robin sincerely hopes so. "I'm sorry you lost a good man."

"Sergeant Samuels was one of my best. A real military man through-and-through who won't hesitate to help others in need." As the Brigadier speaks, they start heading back to the familiar police phone box at the edge of the graveyard. He glances down at her. "You know, he really admired you. Said he was proud to have finally met you in person instead of just hearing the stories."

"Yeah, he really is a good man." Robin gives a small smile at that. It was nice to hear more about Samuels.

"He wouldn't have wanted to see you beat yourself up like this. Yes, you made poor choices, but he made the choice to protect you. He died true to his spirit."

"Thank you, Brigadier."

"You're still young and inexperienced, but don't let that intimidate you. You'll eventually become the person you know you're meant to be. No one starts off great, everyone has their own race to run." Robin slowly nods, letting the words sink in. It's easy to comprehend, but it'll be hard to follow through. With nothing else to say, she gives the Brigadier a little wave and starts to walk away.

"Oh, and one more thing, Miss Lobendino." The brunette turns back around.

"Yes?"

"I can't exactly let you off without appropriate action, so I've decided to demote your rank in UNIT." And Robin nods in understanding.

"Okay, that's reasonable," she consents. It's only right that she face some sort of punishment.

"From now on, you are to remain either by the Doctor's side or in the lab. And if you plan to leave either, it can only be with my expressed permission. Understood?"

"Yes, sir." Robin blinks. It's a very tame punishment in her opinion, especially for a military organization. Then again, she doesn't know her own role or rank inside. Did she even hold an official rank?

"Good." The Brigadier holds out a hand, much to her confusion. "Your badge."

"I have a badge?"

"Apparently not yet," he slowly says as he pulls his hand back. "But you will. Remember to hand it back when you get it."

"Understood. Goodbye, Brigadier."

"Till next time, Miss Lobendino." He gives her a proper salute before turning and leaving in the direction of the parking lot. Robin watches him for a minute before turning around and going back to the TARDIS.

 **.o0o.o0o.**

"So…how are you doing?" The Doctor trailed after her like an uncertain puppy, observing her like a hawk and following from behind.

"Better. Definitely better than before." She stops and turns to face him.

"Good. That's great." The Doctor gives a small smile, but it falls in one go. "Listen Robin, I just wanted to say so–…I shouldn't have tried to run away like that. It was wrong of me."

"Was my age really that offensive, Doctor?" she decides to ask. It was how the incident started, when she used the sonic to scan herself and show the results to him.

"N-no, it was…" The alien trails off, nervously wringing his hands together. "Myself, back then, had grown used to your future self. If I didn't know, then you were there to fill in the gaps. I…I liked that teamwork."

"You felt like it wouldn't work with my current self." And, in a sense, Robin feels like she understands his reasoning too. For the Doctor at that time, it must've been like seeing someone else wear the face of a friend.

"When I tried to leave you behind, I figured that I'd run into another you eventually. _Hoped_ that it would be an older you. I'm–"

"Me too," Robin cuts him off, not wanting to hear the apologies. The Doctor looks at her in fervent alarm but relaxes at the hint of a smile on her face. It's not an I-forgive-you type of reassuring expression, but rather a step in that direction.

"Do you want to go back to your parents?"

"Yeah. Let's get Amy and River and we can do whatever it was you were planning earlier." The Doctor excitedly dashes to the console while Robin heads further into the ship to change out of the black.


End file.
